Under The Mask
by esthered
Summary: Goku is Sanzo's assistant in a highend company and he brings a deep and dark secret along with him. What happens when Sanzo and him start to get closer..and bits of Sanzo's own past starts to reveal? Who exactly is Goku and what is his secret? R&R please!
1. The First Meeting

**I AM BACK! **

After months of being M.I.A from the Fanfiction community, I've finally thought of a new storyline to the Saiyuki boys. This is a modernized fic, and includes excitement, mystery, and a hint of love.

I hope you enjoy this new story! Reviews are greatly appreciated!

**RE-EDITED. Newer and better! **

DISCLAIMER: Saiyuki boys are not mine!

Chapter One: The First Meeting

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The stale room that Sanzo was in sickened him. The brown office chair was tattered and torn, sometimes even burned from Sanzo's cigarette butts. Sanzo stood by the window and placed his palm on the cold glass… The rain splattered hard on the window, beating against Sanzo's palm.

"Cursed weather…" Sanzo muttered angrily while reaching out for his lighter on the table.

Dressed in a black suit, a blue tie and polished black shoes, Sanzo looked very professional indeed. His office was also a dull and boring one. He hardly put up any decorations except for a few paintings, and it was just the white painted wall and sleek black furniture. There was also a vase with a single yellow rose that his secretary put just to liven the place up.

Sanzo lit the cigarette and continued scribbling into his work furiously. He was never always the angry person… It was just him; after keeping all his emotions inside of him after all these years…

A knock on the door sounded.

"Come in, and shut that door right after you!" Sanzo bellowed.

Sanzo didn't face up, but instead continued working. After hearing footsteps enter and a voice clearing his throat, Sanzo threw a casual 'what do you want,' before looking up to see who it was. A shocked expression spread across his face.

"Oh, good afternoon Sir, nice weather, isn't it?" Sanzo murmured the fastest thing he could say to save himself.

Standing in front of him was the company's director, followed by several bodyguards and a petite young boy with short brown hair. He looked peculiar and very young, not even the right age to work. But still, he was wearing a dark blue suit with a red tie that made him look like some genius student. Sanzo stared at this odd boy, who spoke no words.

"Not the best weather, if I do say so myself. I want to introduce you to Son Goku," The director said as he gave Goku a little push forward. "He will be working as your assistant from now onwards, aiding you in the reports and everything else."

Goku was spaced out, his large eyes staring blankly ahead, not looking at Sanzo, not looking at anyone, and just blankly staring. To Sanzo, Goku looked like a little kid sent from outer space.

"B-But I never asked for an assistant! Sir, you're too kind, I can't accept this!" Sanzo pretended as he gave a huge grin.

Inside his heart, Sanzo was cursing and swearing horrendously, hoping for the director to bring this little twerp away from him. He worked alone, he always did, and that wasn't going to change just because of some little boy. Plus, he hated pretending to be nice and humble towards the director. This was not who he was, and he hated being nice.

"I've made up my mind, Sanzo. Goku will work with you from this day onwards. He will be using the office next to yours. You can just halve whatever work you have with him." The director said in a commanding voice, sounding irritated.

"Just a question sir- Will my pay be halved as well?" Sanzo muttered reluctantly as he glared at the young brown eyed boy.

"Oh most definitely not, but with an assistant, the company expects twice, or even thrice the amount of work to be completed. Have a good day!"

With those words, the company director guided Goku to sit at Sanzo's black sofa, and left with his comrade of bodyguards, slamming Sanzo's door behind them. Once they've left, Sanzo angrily slammed his fist onto the table and picked up another cigarette and smoked puff after puff.

Finally, Sanzo settled down and sat a chair away from Goku, who was looking at his surroundings blankly, once again. He examined Goku's vacant face, which doesn't seem to respond to Sanzo's stares or glares.

"So, what do you want, now?" Sanzo asked bluntly, not knowing what else to say without being too mean or too nice.

Goku turned his head slowly and examined Sanzo's face.

"I-I'm hungry," said the nonchalant new worker.

Sanzo looked at him with a face full of utter disbelief.

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The new worker seemed to be full of energy just after stuffing his face full of food. With a chicken leg in his right hand, and a buttered corn cob on the other, Goku's eyes lit up as he devoured ferociously into his food.

"Yum… Best food I've had all year… This chicken is indescribable!" Goku exclaimed within his chewing of food.

Sanzo smoked a cigarette while watching Goku tear into his food, and slurped his drink thirstily. He only paid for his food after realizing that Goku had no money of his own. After an hour of eating, Goku still had the cheek to ask for more.

"Sanzo… I've not tried that kebab! Can I have it, please?"

"Jesus Christ! You've eaten fifty dollars worth, and you're still not full! God, if the director weren't in your favor, I would never do this for you!" Sanzo exclaimed loudly.

Goku's face was indifferent, and he continued smiling as Sanzo bought 2 kebabs from the store. As Goku chewed his food, Sanzo thought about what kind of food Goku ate, since he seemed to have never eaten these foods before.

"Oh delicious, I can't believe I missed out on all these great food..."

"Why haven't you eaten all these before?" Sanzo asked straightforwardly.

"Oh they kept me- I mean, I was in another country before I moved here. They hardly had food like these." Goku replied quickly.

Sanzo thought that Goku replied weirdly and had his suspicions, but moved it to the back of his head soon after smoking a cigarette and having a beer.

The next few days at work were a breeze for Sanzo. Goku was an incredibly efficient worker. He read through papers at great speed and typed reports which were full of detail, always gaining praise from the upper hands.

Sanzo, supposedly being Goku's 'mentor' earned great praise as well, and was relatively proud of him. Sanzo even had a raise and was praised earnestly for taking Goku in hand well.

The end of the week came, and the week's pay was up for collection. Sanzo handed Goku his pay and watched as Goku grabbed the green notes and examined them with wonder.

"T-This is money, isn't it?" Goku asked innocently as he peered up into Sanzo's face.

"Obviously, haven't you used money before?" Sanzo retorted with irritation.

"N-No… it's nothing… it's just… Thank you!" Goku exclaimed as he threw himself into a hug with Sanzo. Sanzo quickly pushed him away.

For some reason, there were tears of joy in Goku's eyes and Sanzo was extremely bewildered by this. He has never seen any of his staff happy to the extent of tearing while receiving their pay. He figured that Goku needed to unwind a little.

"Goku… Do you want to go to the nearby pub for a drink before heading home?"

"A drink, me? Of course I would!" Goku said excitedly while he pranced up and down like a little kid.

They entered the bar with much hassle about Goku's age, until Goku took out his identification card that proves that he's above eighteen. The bouncers gave a nod and chop after awhile and seemed to be really suspicious of Goku.

Sanzo gave a frustrated sigh after they finally passed through the bouncers.

"A chocolate margarita," Sanzo ordered as he sat in front of the bar counter.

He looked over to Goku who was looking around the pub as if he has never seen such a place before. The dance floor was full of people dancing and the loud music blasted into their ears. There were girls all dressed up with heavy makeup and friends sitting in booths laughing and talking loudly.

"This place looks pretty shady, don't you think?" Goku shouted to Sanzo.

Sanzo gave a shrug and wondered why Goku knew nothing about pubs while sipping his margarita. He ordered a beer for Goku, who spit it out after a sip.

"This damned thing is bloody bitter!" Goku commented loudly.

"Why, do you not like beer?" Sanzo asked.

"No- It's just that…" Goku failed to explain, and instead was looking at the gold-coloured liquid with utter disgust.

Irritated, Sanzo snatched the beer and drank it all in a gulp. He ordered a coke for Goku who sipped it happily as he watched the night scene go by. Everything seemed to move so fast paced in the clubs as Goku saw people dance and moving their bodies. Everyone moved differently and Goku was very intrigued.

As time passed, Goku began getting restless in his seat and he couldn't control his body anymore. His mind was taking over what his heart was saying. Goku leapt out of his seat and walked confidently towards the dance floor. He watched the lady beside him for a few minutes before throwing in a few moves of his own! Before long, he seemed to be taking over the dance floor with several girls dancing with him and cheering him on.

Shocked, but unable to control his laughter, Sanzo let out a chuckle before quickly composing himself as he watched the intriguing character dance wonderfully on the dance floor. Goku was twirling and grinding around and even caught Sanzo's eye and motioned him to join in. Sanzo merely gave a glare and a wave of hand.

"Jesus Christ… That kid is unstoppable!" Sanzo commented out loud as he watched Goku do moves he saw ages ago from the musical 'Grease' that the dance floor totally approved of.

The night finally ended with Goku singing to his newly-learnt tune of "Wannabe" by the Spice Girls and walking merrily, with a sudden act of breaking into a dance in the middle of the street. Without a doubt, many people stopped to stare, but Goku couldn't care less and continued moving his body to the beat of the song he was singing. Sanzo could only pretend that he didn't know this crazy kid.

"Need a lift?" Sanzo asked as they reached the car park and he unlocked his car.

That sentence seemed to break Goku away from his merriness and Goku's face suddenly turned glum. He faced away and looked pretty depressed. Goku fiddled with his pockets for a few seconds before looking up to answer Sanzo.

"Umm… No, thank you, it's quite alright. I live pretty nearby. Umm, have a good night then, I shall be making my way." With that, Goku sprinted off to the exit, leaving Sanzo and his black BMW sitting in the middle of the empty car park.

Sanzo thought it was odd that there were any living quarters here in this street since it was mostly offices and factories… The only people that lived around here were beggars and bums who had no homes. Could Goku live with one of them? He decided to brush that silly thought away and drive home.

Who knew, that a string of events were about to play up, because of a younger boy who entered his life abruptly without permission.

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End of chapter. Reviews are greatly appreciated! Tell me what you think about this new twist to the Saiyuki boys!


	2. The Differences?

**Angelkitten23: Haha! Yes, I love Sanzo to have a BMW! Well, as far as Goku is concerned… hmm, it's still a secret to be found out. It's close to the storyline, yet completely different. **

**Harahettabacasaru: Oh, I'm not done with my saiyuki fics! This is my new one. Thanks for liking my story! **

**RipOutTheWingsOfAButterfly-HIM: Thanks for putting me on your alerts. I hope you enjoy this chapter. **

**Luthien-Ikari: Yes, I think I did go too fast paced (that's actually one of my weaknesses), I hope this chapter's better! Thanks for reviewing:D **

**ILovePierreFromSimplePlan: Here's the second chapter! Enjoy: ) **

_Author's Note: This is Chapter Two! Thank you to everyone for reviewing, and I hope you enjoy this story:D _

Chapter Two: The Differences..?

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"What happens in the pantry stays in the pantry!" Gojyo harshly whispered.

Hakkai gave a knowing grin and sipped his coffee slowly. They were gossiping wildly (or rather, Gojyo was) about Sanzo's new assistant, Goku. It was the latest office talk about Goku worshipping Sanzo as if Sanzo had practiced black magic on him. Even Gojyo and Hakkai, who were Sanzo's two closest friends, were unable to decipher why Goku admires Sanzo so.

"Don't you think it's so weird that Goku helps Sanzo withis ashtray to doing practically all his paper work? I wish I had an assistant like that! The foreign affairs department could use some help, you know!" Gojyo said hotly.

"Oh yes, like you don't already have free assistance standing beside you," Hakkai said sarcastically with a small polite smile; showing that he didn't mean any offence.

"Geez, you _may _help me at my office _sometimes, _but at least I don't treat you as a slave! I wonder whether to pity Sanzo for having _such _an admirer, or to pity Goku for being driven to the wall by Sanzo!" Gojyo sipped his tea as he spat those words angrily.

"Ha, Gojyo, just admit that you're jealous of Sanzo's new raise! I know how you've been eyeing that BMW. It's kind of obvious, you know?" Hakkai said with a laugh.

"Oh Hakkai, you don't know how that baby moves! It's so sleek and slender and the leather seats are so comfortable. The engine is practically _silent_. I'd do anything to have that car. It's my dream! I can't wait to be the one sitting on that driver's seat, smoking a cigarette and getting all the babes with my cool new ride." Gojyo explained passionately. His eyes were full of wonder as he said those words, showing his love for the car.

"I knew it! Haha! I think Sanzo probably would know too." Hakkai teased playfully.

"Screw it if he knows, he should probably get me a ride like his, considering he's _oh-so-rich_ now. Gee." Gojyo retorted while putting out his cigarette.

They both looked at each other for a couple of minutes before Hakkai gave a small teasing smile after recalling the conversation.

"Don't blame me if this leaks out…" Hakkai started, before being abruptly cut off by Gojyo.

"I told you, whatever happens in the pantry _stays _in the pantry!" Gojyo said angrily as he stormed out of the pantry, leaving Hakkai to chuckle quietly to himself as he followed behind.

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Knocking on the door was heard as Sanzo minded his business and read through some files while smoking a cigarette. He had no intention of allowing anyone to come into his office during his quiet contemplation time, but his tar-filled lungs choked with smoke as the door suddenly slammed open. There stood red-headed Gojyo in his navy blue suit, looking nonchalant as he walked into Sanzo's office.

"WHAT THE- GOJYO! HOW DARE YOU SLAM INTO MY OFFICE LIKE THAT," Sanzo bellowed angrily.

"I have to talk to you! I knocked, but you never answered the damned door!" Gojyo retorted as he sat himself down on Sanzo's guest leather seats raised his legs and crudely put them on Sanzo's work desk,

"Well doesn't that give you an idea that I didn't want to be _disturbed_? So speak, what do you want, after rudely barging in my office? And get your legs off my desk!" Sanzo said bluntly as he arranged his papers.

Gojyo looked around the square shaped office. It was one of the biggest in the company and twice, or maybe thrice the size of his! The walls were painted white with the modern style lighting that fitted perfectly with the ceiling. There was also the black leather guest seats and sofa, completed with a glass coffee table that has a single white vase that holds a white lily flower, recently changed by the secretary. A bookshelf resided next to Sanzo's work table that held his laptop and several other work items.

"Stop looking around, and tell me what you came here for!" Sanzo demanded.

"Don't even have that spare bit of patience, do you? Anyway, I came here to talk to you about Goku… Your new perky assistant, what's the deal with him? He's all smiles every time you give him work to do! Tell me Sanzo, where do you find such a good worker? You must have bought him off eBay!" Gojyo said with a fake laugh.

Sanzo gave Gojyo a menacing stare which Gojyo ignored and rolled his eyes. Sanzo's brown eyes gave Gojyo a shudder with its deep and warm colour. The air suddenly became really awkward. Finally, Sanzo stopped his staring game and answered Gojyo's question.

"The director insisted that Goku become my assistant. I didn't buy that brat anywhere. Is that all you've got to ask? I'm busy! Get your legs _off _my desk!"

"The _director_! Woah, that guy sure must like you to come all the way down to your office just to give you a new assistant. Anyway, Hakkai and I are hanging at the pub later on, want to join us?" Gojyo asked nonchalantly, still ignoring Sanzo's demand for his legs off the desk.

Sanzo gave a nod and made a sound in agreement while focusing his eyes on the report that he had just written. Before anyone could say anything else, Sanzo's office door slammed open again, with Goku in sight.

"Sanzo, I typed the new report! I think this is going to be the best report I've ever done!" Goku exclaimed excitedly, completely ignoring Gojyo's presence.

Sanzo took the report, examined it and gave a nod.

"Thanks, Goku." Sanzo said while waving his hand to dismiss him, his face still facing down, reading his papers.

As Goku closed the office door shut, Gojyo sniggered loudly, and pointed at Sanzo hysterically.

"What!" Sanzo asked, irritated.

"_Sanzo, I typed the new report! Ooh, it's the best report!_" Gojyo teased while laughing wildly. "Sanzo, I think he's in love with you. He actually enjoys doing your reports!"

"Get out of here!" Sanzo yelled angrily as he picked up a pencil holder and threw it at Gojyo. "And GET YOUR LEGS OFF MY DESK, DO YOU WANT ME TO GET VIOLENT!"

"Geez, relax dude, I don't see what the big deal is about… I'll see you at the pub tonight… And oh, bring _Goku._ Hakkai and I are absolutely dying to know him. Such a character, Goku is." Gojyo said as he finally took his legs down from the desk and stood up to walk to the door.

"Do you want me to rip you apart before you're satisfied!" Sanzo threatened with much truth in his voice.

"Okay, okay, I'll let myself out now, no need to see me off!" Gojyo said while closing the office door.

Sanzo heaved a heavy sigh and stared at the skyscrapers and various office buildings that can be seen from his window. The smell of his room gave him some sort of nostalgic feeling; thinking about how he, Gojyo and Hakkai graduated from school together and went on to work in the same company. It was funny, how they tolerated his temper, his rudeness and mean words, and went through everything with him throughout his life. Thinking about the fun times they spent together in the past, Sanzo gave a brief, slight smile.

"_Thank you… Thank you my friends for everything you have done for me. I'll never forget your kindness. Maybe I should stop being mean…"_ Sanzo thought to himself.

A few seconds later, he completely changed his mind.

"…Nah!" Sanzo said out loud with a small chuckle as he smoked on his cigarette.

Sanzo watched the sky as the clouds drifted by slowly. It was calming for him, in the sense that he didn't have much bothering him at the moment. Work was good, Goku did up most of the perfect reports; life was good, he just had a salary raise, his body was in good shape; his personal trainer told him that his muscles have improved despite his bad stamina due to incessant smoking. Just by watching the clouds, he felt his life float by slowly as well. However, he felt something was missing in his heart. The heart which beats for life, what was he living for? Sanzo couldn't figure out. After all these years of life, he never found what he was looking for. His father left at a young age, leaving his mother in much despair and loss. And after completing his studies, he left his home and started working; hardly visiting his mother at all.

Sanzo thought that she deserved it. Throughout his childhood and teenage years, what was his mother doing? She worked at a bar, hiking young girls to the older men, got drunk and hardly came back home. She swore a hundred times that she will change, but she never did. He finally left home and moved in with Hakkai, who had his own place, before earning enough money to get his own, and still she never bothered to contact him nor search for him. So all this time, who was he living for, or what was he living for… himself?

Sanzo brushed the thoughts away angrily, and focused back on his work.

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The pub was packed with people as usual, and the ambience was rather good. The bar had a mediocre dance floor with several red booths and a bar counter. Gojyo and Hakkai were sitting comfortably in one of the booths as Sanzo made his way through the dancing crowd to get to them. It was easy to spot them, given Gojyo's flaming red hair.

Sanzo was greeted with smiles and a 'hi', but he just sat down and immediately pulled out a cigarette.

"Got a lighter?" He asked bluntly.

Gojyo sulked and flicked the lighter to him. Hakkai was sipping on a strawberry margarita while Gojyo chugged beer. Sanzo ordered a plain vodka coke as the waiter walked pass. The three of them were back to their usual hang out place again; just like old times. The past few months had been pretty hectic till the extent that these three friends could hardly go out anymore. They were either too busy, or too tired.

"So, where's Goku? I thought I asked you to bring him." Gojyo asked slyly.

"I don't have to listen to what you say." Sanzo replied rudely.

Gojyo smirked and gave Hakkai a knowing look.

"Now what was that look for!" Sanzo asked angrily.

"You know what Sanzo; I think you're becoming someone's role model… Goku totally worships you. He does all your work, he fetches you coffee, he eats lunch with you, sometimes even paying for you! And you treat him with such indifference…" Gojyo said plainly while taking a swig of his beer.

"Aren't that what assistants are supposed to do?" Sanzo retorted bluntly as he fetched his drink from the waiter.

"Yes- but that dude totally worships you! I see him hanging around after work waiting for you even though he's finished his time! You better be careful, Sanzo…" Gojyo said with a small chuckle.

"Yeah, right, whatever. And what were _you _doing after work, stalking Goku?" Sanzo asked with an eyebrow raised.

Hakkai let out a laugh as Gojyo's face turned red and sulked.

"I was merely waiting for Hakkai to finish up the paper work! He was supposed to send me home in his car; and I just _happened _to see Goku lingering outside your office, waiting for you, a few nights ago! Not everyone has a swanky BMW like yours!"

Sanzo rolled his eyes and played with his lighter. He wondered where Goku was, where he lived, how he went home… Goku was very cheerful at work, but mysterious when it came to going home. Goku was a really good worker at work, though. He brought Sanzo coffee whenever he saw that Sanzo was getting frustrated, he helped Sanzo with his paperwork and helped to tidy up his office when he's got the time.

'_Goku's quite a nice assistant…" _Sanzo thought as he began to drift off in his own thoughts.

"Sanzo, Sanzo!" A voice called as Sanzo was awakening from his thoughts.

Sanzo focused his eyes on Gojyo, who was pointing hysterically to a blonde woman with a curvaceous figure, wearing a black tube top and a mini red skirt.

"I'm going to get that chick tonight!" Gojyo whispered as he left the table to buy that woman a drink.

Hakkai looked at Sanzo and gave him a shrug as Sanzo looked at him questioningly. Hakkai was the same old Hakkai that Sanzo lived together with for a few years before moving out last year. He was patient, kind and fun-loving, never really getting angry with anyone who did anything to him. Sanzo did see Hakkai angry once… and it was sights that Sanzo would much rather forget.

"So, how have you been, Sanzo? The cat's been wailing for you lately, and I have no idea why." Hakkai said with a smile.

Sanzo thought about the cat that Hakkai and Sanzo kept while they were living together. They found it as a kitten by the roadside one day as they were walking back from the grocery store. Sanzo hated cats, but after much persuasion from Hakkai, he agreed to live with it. In fact, he's grown pretty fond of it.

"Not like I care…" Sanzo pretended as he stubbed out his cigarette butt.

Hakkai laughed and grinned. He knew that Sanzo was fond of the cat. He often saw Sanzo cuddling the cat secretly at night and sneaking it snacks. What Hakkai loved most about his friend, was his tough exterior and his soft interior.

"Oh you do! The cat goes to your old room and jumps onto your bed at night, always hoping that you'll be there. I think you better move back, Sanzo." Hakkai said jokingly.

"Hakkai, you know that's impossible…"

"Yeah, but I sure missed you so…" Hakkai said under his voice, before moving out of the booth to join Gojyo.

Sanzo thought about what Hakkai said and suddenly felt emotional. It was hard on him to constantly live off Hakkai. Even though they've been sharing the rent, Hakkai often pays for food and the bills. Sanzo didn't like that idea; and often felt really bad. However now, he prefers staying alone. Feeling a weird sense of emotion that he couldn't handle, Sanzo left the pub abruptly without informing anyone.

The road to the car park was a short one, but Sanzo raced towards it. He couldn't control his thoughts and he hated being that way. He knew it was impossible to turn back time and relieve those happy moments, but he had a hard time expressing his feelings to his friends. Finally, he reached his car. Opening the door with such haste and slamming it shut after getting in, Sanzo paused for a second, and began to cry.

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Yes! Chapter two is done! I hope you guys enjoyed this one. The next few chapters would _hopefully _be more interesting ones… There'll be the revealing of some character's secret past and much more… REVIEWS are what makes my day, and makes me happy… SO REVIEW AWAY!


	3. The Pathway

**Koto Juri: Thank you very much. **

**Luthien-Ikari: Thank you, I do take your reviews into consideration:D Well, yeah sometimes my vocab does get cranky, but I've tried better this time. Hope this chapter's more enjoyable! Ooh, and I really love the BMW… :P **

**AngelKitten23: Thank you! Goku's one of my favourite characters too! x) **

**Harahettabacasaru: Yes I did take a look at your story! x) I hope you enjoy this chapter. **

Disclaimer: Saiyuki is not mine.

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The weekend passed briefly and Sanzo was once stuck in the office again, haunted by Gojyo's endless taunts about Goku. Hakkai did question him about his sudden disappearance from the pub, but he merely shrugged it off and Hakkai questioned no further. Apparently, Gojyo got duped by the blonde and almost got beaten up by the blonde's boyfriend before Hakkai pulled the half-drunk Gojyo out of the pub. It wasn't something surprising for the likes of Gojyo.

Sanzo stared into his coffee that Goku had made and thought about his life, once again. He walked towards the door and peeped through the glass, hidden by the blinds that cover the windows. Goku was busy typing up his report on his computer, with a rather enthusiastic smile on his face as he sipped coffee and continued typing.

Sanzo decided that Goku had to take a break. Strolling to Goku's office and slightly knocking the door, Sanzo was greeted with a loud, 'Come in!' by Goku's voice.

"S-Sanzo, are you here for the report? Don't worry, I'm almost done!" Goku proclaimed anxiously.

"Baka, I'm here to ask you if you wanted to have some tea with me downstairs at the cafeteria. Don't get me wrong- I was going anyways and I was just checking if you wanted to take a break, too." Sanzo said.

Goku's eyes lit up and he quickly shut down his computer. He scrambled from his seat and stood up, almost knocking his coffee over. Sanzo had already begun to walk ahead of him and Goku hastily followed.

The cafeteria was spaced out, with not many people patronizing during office hours. Goku ordered a huge ice-cream waffle while Sanzo settled for just a hot cappuccino. Goku dug into his waffle and made chit chat with Sanzo in between mouthfuls.

"Thank you for inviting me, Sanzo. I appreciate it, I was getting really hungry! I've been in the office the whole day typing up reports, not that I don't enjoy it, but I got hungry! And the crackers that the pantry had weren't enough!"

"So that's where all the crackers went to. Jesus, stop acting like a monkey! I just asked you casually- not anything else!"

"But still- I appreciate your kindness. Oh Sanzo, you have no idea how fun work has been lately! The report themes have become more interesting by day! Ideas are churning out of my mind… Hmm, like water out of a hose!"

Sanzo stifled his laugh as Goku attempted an idiom. However, he did nothing to hide his bewilderment that Goku actually enjoyed writing up reports.

"What's wrong? Did I say something wrong? Ooh Sanzo, I want a banana split!" Goku asked absent-mindedly which he quickly turned into an order for a banana split from the waiter.

Sanzo shook his head and creased his eyebrows. Goku was really intriguing… He didn't want to question about his personal life, but Goku was definitely mysterious. He would talk about anything under the sun, but never about his family, social life or where he lived. Sanzo decided not to probe within Goku's life, after all, what right does he have to do that?

As he watched Goku devour the banana split in front of him, he was reminded of himself, while eating his first banana split that his mother bought him at the nearby café. He wanted to return to his hometown, where he grew up, where he had his first memories. Sanzo wanted to visit his mother again.

"Goku," Sanzo said as he grabbed Goku's arm.

Goku looked up to Sanzo' face in shock and his eyes matched Sanzo's fierce and serious ones.

"Do you want to see my hometown?" Sanzo asked with a very serious tone in his voice as a crease began to form at his forehead. Goku could tell that Sanzo was very serious about this.

"O-Of course, Sanzo, why the sudd-,"

Before Goku could finish his sentence, Sanzo grabbed him by his arm, yanked him off the chair and walked towards the car park. Not before long, Goku and Sanzo sped off in his black BMW.

As the car moved, Goku stared out the window. Everything passed by them so fast in a blur that Goku could hardly keep up. His big brown eyes peered up into the sky out of curiousity and saw the many clouds move by quickly as the car drove on.

Soon, they were entering a shady town, with little shops, only one pharmacy, a grocery store, and probably a café or two. There were people who weren't dressed fashionably; instead, they were casual and comfortable. Goku saw several children chasing a small brown spotted puppy and adults just strolling near the pathway. It was a calming town, without the people being affected by the ways of the city. They lived their own life in their own way, their own path.

"What town is this, Sanzo?" Goku meekly asked. The air between Sanzo and him had become awkward after some time of not talking.

"Daise, my hometown," was all Sanzo replied before focusing his attention back on driving.

Goku put his two palms on the car window and leaned his face close, everyone was laughing joyfully as they walked past, it seemed to be the best place to live in; where you could be happy no matter whom you are or how you lived. The best thing was, no one seemed to be materialistic or superficial…

The car soon drove into a darker part of town and the scenery changed almost immediately. The streets were filled with pubs and strip clubs, and there were drunken men lying around the streets; their clothes tattered and torn and usually with a few empty beer bottles around them. There were many biker gangs, and Goku saw a few of them whispering to each other and pointing at Sanzo's fancy BMW car. There were also skimpily dressed women frolicking among the men, flirting terribly.

The polished black ride soon took a sharp right turn into a street with street lamps lined up by the pathway. It wasn't long before Goku saw a young boy getting mugged and thrashed up by a few men.

"Sanzo, let's go help him, Sanzo!" Goku cried.

"Do you want my car to be stolen?" Sanzo said selfishly as he drove on, faster than ever.

Finally, they hurled to a stop in front of a dirty looking old colonial house. There were stray weeds and plants growing all over the garden, and vines were climbing up the wall. The gate was brown and eaten by rust while the walls were blackened with dirt. The rubbish bin outside the house was buzzing with flies, and there was even rubbish thrown out onto the lawn. It definitely wasn't the most well kept house.

"Let's go," Sanzo commanded as he left the car.

After Goku was out of the car, Sanzo double locked it and walked into the house as Goku followed. The gate creaked horribly as Sanzo pushed it open. They reached the doorstep, which was covered with cobwebs and dust. Sanzo fiddled with his keys and finally found the right one. Pushing open the door, a cake of dust flew off. Goku cringed as he ran into the house.

It was a cold and gloomy house, with grey walls and a darkened wood staircase. The walls had crooked photo frames, and holes, which showed something, had been thrown against it. The carpet was filled with stains and rubbish thrown around. Not to mention, several clothes being left on the floor.

"Mother, Mother! Are you here?" Sanzo called out angrily.

A running was heard coming down the stairs, and within seconds, a chubby middle aged woman with collagen-pumped lips, wearing red spandex shorts and an ugly yellow top with blonde hair was seen. Her face was heavily caked with make up and her lips formed an 'O' out of shocked after spotting Sanzo's manly face.

"M-My Sanzo, you've come back to mommy!"

She ran up to hug Sanzo, which then her perfume infused Goku's nose. Sanzo gently pushed her away, and tears were seen in her eyes while Sanzo's face was indifferent.

"Oh Sanzo, where on earth have you been all these years? I tried looking for you- everywhere! I even put up notices on the newspaper… but finally the sheriff said there wasn't any use… he said you were gone… you left so suddenly, my dear, you left your poor mommy all alone." Sanzo's mother wept loudly.

"You were never alone, as far as I knew," Sanzo retorted.

"Oh my son, what are you talking about? Never mind, it doesn't matter! All that matters is that you're back! And who is your little friend, here?" Sanzo's mom asked while examining Goku's innocent face.

"I-I'm Goku, Sanzo colleague at work. Nice to meet you,"

"Oh, Goku, lovely name, call me May."

May led them into the sitting room where a few mice were spotted upon their arrival. The coffee table had stacks of empty pizza boxes stacked on it with coffee mugs unglamorously placed all over. Spilled coffee stains were seen on the carpets and table. Goku had to search for a clean spot in the sofa to sit while Sanzo plunked himself down next to him, not aware of the crumbs of bread he was sitting on. May pulled a chair from nearby and sat in front of them.

"So, my boy, what have you been doing all these years? Mommy missed her son so much… You've grown so much! My, you've turned into such a man! You must be a lady killer, aren't you? All the ladies fainting by your feet, eh?" May asked furoiously as she took Sanzo's hand in hers.

"I-I've been living at Hakkai's, I recently bought my own pad." Sanzo explained briefly, trying to avoid most of his mother's questions.

"That skinny lad with the spectacles that barely fit his face? Yes I remember he was a good friend to you throughout your years… My, Sanzo, my little boy, I've missed you so much. I can't believe you've never visited me all these years… Your poor mother suffered much without you."

Sanzo said nothing and looked away. He was hardly thinking, or recording this moment in his head. He just had to do this, overcome his fear of seeing his mother after all these years. Goku stopped and stared at this uncomfortable reunion between Sanzo and his mother. It was nothing he has ever seen before.

"So, my baby, where are you working now, and as what?" May asked once again.

"I work at PS Company; we're an electronics company that dabbles in new inventions. I'm the general manager of the advertisement department." Sanzo elucidated clearly.

"Wow, you've made it big, my son! Daise town will be thrilled to hear the news! My own son, being a big GM in the famous electronics company! Oh you must be earning a lot of money!"

Sanzo just shook his head and looked away, while Goku saw his mother's face full of hope.

"Sanzo, I'm sure you're earning big money; don't lie to your mother… I know well how much a GM earns. Now if you could only spare me some so your poor mother could survive past the days…"

Sanzo was taken aback even he knew this was coming. He withdrew his hand from his mother's grasp and stared at her fiercely and angrily. After all this time, all this years, he has finally come to visit her and all she asks for is money. Sanzo knew she still hasn't changed. She was the same old mother he left many, many years ago. It was fruitless.

"Who do you owe now, mother? WHO? AFTER ALL THESE YEARS, ALL YOU WANT IS MONEY!" Sanzo bellowed angrily as he stood up from his seat.

May was shocked at her son's blowup, and soon enough, her temper reached the limit.

"DON'T YOU TALK TO ME LIKE THAT, _YOU _WALKED OUT ON ME, YOUR POOR MOTHER! YOU LEFT ME ALL ALONE! I DESERVE TO HAVE SOME OF YOUR ENORMOUS SALARY!"

"YOU NEVER LOVED ME, DID YOU! ALL YOU CARED ABOUT WAS THOSE MEN IN THE PUB-,"

A slap sound was heard and Sanzo's cheek stung from the slap.

"THOSE MEN WERE MY WAY OF SURVIVAL YOU UNGRATEFUL BRAT! YEAH, I NEVER LOVED YOU. YOU FILTHY BASTARD CHILD! YOUR FATHER RAN AWAY WITH THAT SLUT AND EXPECTED ME TO RAISE YOU? AND NOW YOU DON'T EVEN GIVE ME A CENT OF REPAYMENT!"

Sanzo looked at her, hurt and confused. He was gravely shocked that his mother had spitted the truth out after all these years. She never loved him; she never ever treated him as her son. All she wanted was a repayment.

"You want money. Right, here's money." Sanzo dug out all the money he had in his wallet and threw it on the table, while May quickly grabbed it, counted it and hugged it near her bosom. She seemed so hungry for cash.

"You'll never see me again; I hope you die in peace." Sanzo said angrily as he walked out of the house, with Goku following suit.

Once they reached the car, Sanzo stared at Goku, without saying a word. It was obvious that Sanzo was saddened, and Goku wanted to make him feel better.

"You know Sanzo, maybe she was just having a bad day, I don't think she meant anything she said back there. She seemed pretty nice when were arrived." Goku said encouragingly.

"She was after my money," Sanzo said bluntly as he looked back to his house.

"I-I'm sure that's not the case, maybe she just really needed a loan, you never know, jobs are hard to find these days…"

"Enough, Goku, let's go." Sanzo demanded as he got into his car.

As Goku sat in the car, he reflected upon what happened. He didn't know that Sanzo had such a past within him. He wanted Sanzo to be happy, and he would do anything for that to happen. He didn't know why he cared about Sanzo, but he just knew he wanted him to be happy.

"I'm sending you home, Goku, where do you live?" Sanzo asked plainly.

"Just drop me back at the office, Sanzo… I guess I still have work to do. You know, you shouldn't think too much about May. I really think she's having issues. Maybe you need to work them out with her, you know, like maybe bring her flowers or something!"

"Why don't you shut up," Sanzo said angrily as he screeched the car to a stop in the middle of the road.

Sanzo banged his palms against the steering wheel and got out of the car hastily for a smoke before going back in. He blinked tears away angrily and faced Goku. His face had no anger or hatred, simply hurt.

"Now… Now you know my past, you know who I really am. Despise me, go ahead. I don't need your pity. It was a mistake… bringing you here." Sanzo said.

Goku wanted to speak, but Sanzo turned away and started the car up. No words came out of either of them for the whole car trip back as they drove into the sunset, back into the city.

The car stopped near the entrance of the office, and as Goku wanted to thank Sanzo and say bye, Sanzo drove off hastily. Goku was hurt as he watched the black car drive out of sight. He didn't know why Sanzo had to be that way towards him. He was glad that Sanzo brought him to his hometown, but he would never ever despise Sanzo for his past.

As he began walking back to the office, his chest was suddenly shot with a very stinging pain. He immediately got himself together and ran towards the direction of what he called home.

-----

A few hours had passed and Sanzo was in his house, shirtless, chain-smoking and blasting rock music. He slouched on his dark purple smooth sofa as he spread his arms across the sofa seats and made himself comfortable. A bottle of red wine was seen, half empty with the empty wine glass next to it. Sanzo certainly knew how to drink away his troubles.

The rain was pouring badly outside and the wind even uprooted a tree. Sanzo was glad to be safe and comfortable at home. Sanzo hated rainy days… he always did. It was raining… on the night his father left home. He remembered his younger self kneeling in front of the door way, face full of tear stains and staring at his father's back as he walked through the rainy night.

Sanzo shook his head violently to rid himself of these thoughts. He proceeded to pour himself another glass of wine, before he heard the doorbell ring.

Swearing, Sanzo walked towards the door and opened it. Wet from running through the rain, Goku fell into Sanzo's arms.

"What the- Goku, what are you doing here!" Sanzo asked out of shock.

Goku's tired brown eyes looked up at Sanzo and dirt, blood, bruises and cuts were seen on his face.

"I-I'm hungry," was all Goku said, the same first words that came out of his mouth when they first met.

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Chapter three is finally _done_.! Took me a lot of thinking, this one did. I think the next few chapters are going to be harder for me to write, but no worries, I'll do them up! I hope you all enjoyed looking into a bit of Sanzo's past… although there's more to come.

If you read, it's only right that you review! x) thank you:D


	4. The Truth

**AngelKitten23: Well, I guess this story follows close to the anime about Sanzo and the rain. Yes Sanzo's mother is a bitch! But someone had to play the bad person. :P Heh. It's true; all she wanted was money for "raising" Sanzo. Enjoy this chapter and thank you for your review. : ) **

**SanzoxGoku Lover: Woah, didn't really intend for it to be fluffy, but thank you! Yes I hate May too. Goku is innocent because… a lot will be revealed in this chapter. : ) Thank you for your review! **

**RipOutTheWingsOfAButterfly-HIM: Find out in this chapter! x) Thanks for reviewing:D **

**Letainajup: Thank you for reading my story and thanks for the compliment! x) I'm constantly trying to improve! **

**Luthien-Ikari: Aww, that means you won't be reviewing for awhile! Well, have lots of fun in Japan! And yes, I simply love the BMW:P Yup, I know that in the original story, it's Goku… I've watched, heh. x) **

**Dreamydreamer: Thank you, and here's the update! **

**ILovePierreFromSimplePlan: I saw from pictures that Sanzo's eyes are brown… But I don't know, I could be wrong! Heh x) Maybe this chapter will cheer you up… Or not..? Lol, enjoy! **

**Rubics: Here's chapter four up and running! Thanks for reviewing and enjoy! **

_Author's Note: Thank you for everyone who reviewed in this chapter, all I can say is… you'll find out what happened to Goku in this chapter… and I hope you enjoy it! Don't hate me! Contains mild ahem language in this chapter… So yeah. _

Disclaimer: Saiyuki does not belong to me at all.

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Sanzo said nothing. He stared at Goku with confusion and shock. The latter was hungrily gobbling up Chinese takeout which was delivered fifteen minutes after Sanzo found him by the door. As they sat on the dining table, Sanzo observed Goku's state. Blood was stained on Goku's white collared shirt, with multiple cuts on his face, bruises on his chin and eyes, and large gashes that spouted blood on his arms and legs. Ignoring the wounds, Goku seemed to be concentrated on just stuffing himself with food.

"Goku… what happened to you?" Sanzo asked with a crease on his forehead out of concern. He was shocked, and scared at the same time. It was the first question that came to his mind. He wondered if there were other internal injuries. Goku looked as if he got knocked down by a truck!

"Do you need a doctor, Goku?" Sanzo asked again when no reply came from Goku.

Goku put down his chopsticks and continued being silent. He looked up and stared at Sanzo's face with his bruised and swollen eyes, and finally looked away with tears rolling down his cheeks, stinging the wounds. For the next few minutes, no one said anything. Goku didn't move an inch, and Sanzo didn't know what to do or say.

The heavy silence was broken by Sanzo getting out of his seat, causing a screeching sound. He walked over to Goku and placed a hand on his shoulder, causing Goku to flinch in surprise.

"Relax… Let's get you cleaned up." Sanzo said in a calming tone, and was seen with a gentle smile on his face.

Goku peered into Sanzo's glowing smile and eyes. He knew that he had finally found the light he has been searching for all this while…

------

The bathroom echoed Goku's shouts and groans as Sanzo dabbed the antiseptic-filled cotton ball on Goku's wounds. The wounds were crusted with dirt as Sanzo washed them under water. Goku hasn't spoken a word since saying he's hungry, and Sanzo was getting pretty irritated with his silence.

When Goku was all cleaned up and clothed, Sanzo opened a spare room for him to sleep in. They both entered the room as Sanzo put his hand on Goku's arm as assurance. Goku turned around and looked into Sanzo's tender face. He didn't know what to say or what to do. It was utter awkwardness as their eyes met.

"Well then, you better get some rest. I'll see you in the morning." Sanzo said as he broke the silence.

With that, Sanzo started to leave the room. Goku hesitated, but spoke with his cracked voice.

"W-Wait, Sanzo,"

Sanzo turned back with an eyebrow arched, but still maintaining that kind face. Goku has never seen Sanzo's smile and he was pleasantly surprised that he has the opportunity to witness it. It was the kindest smile he has ever seen.

"T-Thank you, Sanzo…" Goku muttered as he scratched his scalp.

A tint of pink brushed over Sanzo's cheeks as Goku said those words, and almost immediately, Sanzo looked down uncomfortably and cleared his throat. He was tongue-tied and couldn't get any words out of his lips. It was as if his voice has been taken away. Finally, Sanzo found his voice and partially whispered.

"Er… I-It's alright. Gd'night," Sanzo said quickly as he exited the room in a hurry and went into his own.

Goku was dumbfounded at Sanzo's reaction and decided to go to sleep. He had a very, very long night and what he really needed now was rest before facing the truth tomorrow. He knew he couldn't escape for much longer.

-----

The morning broke with the harsh sunlight beaming down its rays through Sanzo's windows into the big and empty house. Goku was up early and rummaged through Sanzo's refrigerator to prepare breakfast for Sanzo. As he fried an egg, the oil jumped and stung him on his arm. Goku flinched and jumped back.

"Stupid oil…" Goku said angrily.

Finally, breakfast was done and Goku placed it carefully on the table. It was nine in the morning and Sanzo was in the bathroom washing up. As he splashed water on his face and dried it with a towel, Sanzo looked at himself in the mirror, stared hard and recalled everything that happened last night. It was ironic how Goku never hated him for how he usually talks to Goku. He felt odd about how Goku thanked him, and how kind he was towards Goku last night. It wasn't like Sanzo to do that.

The hallway to the dining room was filled with delicious smells of eggs, bacon and French toast. As Sanzo entered the dining room, he saw a wonderful spread of breakfast on the table. There was almost everything imaginable. Blueberry waffles, cereal with milk, cheese melt sandwiches and the list goes on… Goku was sitting at the table beaming at Sanzo widely.

"G-Goku… You made all of these?" Sanzo asked as his eyes were wide open, staring at the food.

"Yep, I found a lot of food stashed away in your refrigerator unused, so I made use of them! Come and try some!" Goku exclaimed happily, satisfied with the result of his breakfast.

"You bakazaru, who told you to use up all those food in my fridge! Now I have to go grocery shopping again! And why did you make so much food! We can't possibly finish all of that!" Sanzo said angrily, raising his voice a little.

However, Goku seemed relaxed and indifferent. He didn't react to Sanzo's annoyance or apologize. He simply sat there, smiling happily while helping himself to some blueberry waffles. Sanzo sat down and drank some of the coffee that Goku made.

_I-It's surprisingly pleasant to my taste... And the food is pretty good too! It's been a long time since I had such a good breakfast... But what happened last night? I have to know… But is now the right time? I don't really want to ruin his mood. He seems so happy. And he did cook me this breakfast out of goodwill… Maybe I should thank him… Or maybe not…_

Sanzo brushed his thoughts away and sighed angrily as he took a piece of French toast and chewed on it. Throughout the whole breakfast, no one said another word. Finally after close to an hour, the food was all completely gone, without a crumb left. Goku, being Goku, finished up most of the food. Finally, they both completed the dish washing and sat loosely on the sofa as Sanzo lazily changed TV channels to and fro. They both finally decided on a sports channel as they watched the basketball players run around and jump-shooting the ball into the net. Sanzo decided that it was time to break the ice.

"Ne, Goku,"

"Nani?"

"What happened to you last night, where did you get all those bruises and cuts?" Sanzo asked rather straightforwardly. He didn't like wasting time.

Goku looked flustered as he averted his eyes away from Sanzo and looked around nervously. He bit his nails as he tapped his fingers on the table, pretending to concentrate on the basketball game.

"Sanzo, don't you think this player's really good? He's got the built and the-"

Before he could finish, he heard a loud 'BANG!' on the table. Sanzo had slammed his fist down on the glass coffee table and a crack line appeared, resembling a bare tree stem. Sanzo's fair face was full of fury as he looked at Goku fiercely. His eyebrows and forehead creased as he heaved heavy breaths.

"Stop avoiding the fucking question and tell me right now!" Sanzo spat furiously. His eyes had a different look and his whole face turned red.

Blood was rushing up to Sanzo's head as he lost patience with Goku's pretence and ignorance. He didn't want to do this or be like this, but Goku really made him lose his mind. All he did was care for Goku; that's why he asked what happened… If not, would he even bother?

Tears started streaming down Goku's cheeks as he saw Sanzo's infuriated expressions. He didn't want to lie to Sanzo anymore… nor did he want to continue keeping up with this pretence. He stood up and took a tissue from its box in the shelf and hastily wiped away his tears. Then, while checking for any eavesdroppers, Goku brought Sanzo to his room and slammed the door shut before double checking for unwanted listeners.

Goku sighed and took a seat as Sanzo proceeded to do the same. It was finally time to speak.

"I-I was beaten up yesterday…" Goku started nervously as he shifted his eyes around.

"By who, and why?" Sanzo asked irritably.

"Sanzo, what you're about to find out is all the truth. I just hope you won't hate me, or change what you think of me…" Goku said as tears started welling up in his eyes.

"Just get on with it!" Sanzo commanded angrily as he cracked his knuckles.

I'm actually… a slave for this corporation called NESS. They're a very secret company funded by extremely rich people who pay them to make people."

"_Make _people? What in the world do you mean?"

"I mean growing them cell by cell, muscle by muscle, Sanzo. These rich people have these customized people to be their lovers, toys, personal pleasures… you get the idea. But of course, that's not the only people that NESS makes, they clone people as well. And _I_am one of those clones."

Sanzo stared at Goku in disbelief as Goku hung his head down and shaking it gravely as tears trickled down his cheeks. Sanzo slapped his forehead and leaned back on the sofa. Thoughts were running speedily through his mind. He had no space to think of anything else. He simply needed to accept this truth that Goku was telling him.

"If you're one of the clones… Then where is the real body," Sanzo asked monotonously. He didn't know how to express or react.

"H-He's dead, for over fifty years or more. They preserved his body and cloned his DNA so it'll become me."

"What the- So why are you working here!" Sanzo asked, feeling ridiculed. The story was getting more and more absurd by the moment.

"You see, I was actually sent to gather information about you. The director was threatened by one of the rich people that own the company. The person who created NESS, Lady Ami, is after you… She wants to make you one of the customized people."

Sanzo gaped and looked at Goku in wide-eyed horror. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He couldn't take this crap. He knew it was true (he even tried pinching himself), and he knew he had to find a way out, but of people, why him? He found no words to say, his voice would not obey him and his feet were jelly. He would have no choice but to continue listening to Goku.

"Customized people have microchips in their brains to tell them what to do, teach them how to react. Clones like me have special purposes, be it assassination, or spying, or doing just what I was sent to do. We were all trained in everyway since our birth. NESS doesn't allow clones to go out into the human world until we're trained enough. That's why we're always being kept underground, learning through specialized NESS teachers that tell us about the human world. I-I'm sorry Sanzo… I'm so sorry,"

Goku sobbed into his palms as he told Sanzo these words. He wasn't done with his explanation.

"Y-You see, Sanzo, I've come to care for you, more than anyone else in the world. And when Lady Ami found out, she beat me up horrendously and ordered for me to be put a microchip in my brain so I could be manipulated as well… But I didn't want to lose my memories, Sanzo; I didn't want to lose control. So I escaped… No one expected me to, after all the orders that I have obeyed, I seemed like a loyal clone, but I escaped… and I came to find you."

Goku started breathing heavily as he rubbed his swollen eyes. He didn't know how Sanzo felt; or what he was going to do next. He just looked at Sanzo with his forlorn eyes as Sanzo spaced out blankly, absorbing the information that has been given to him.

"H-How does Lady Ami know of my existence…" Sanzo said, finally having the strength to speak.

"I think she used to live in Daise, and I found out that she saw you again working in the company when she went to visit the director one day. I-I'm sorry Sanzo, I'm so sorry, I never wanted to lie to you." Goku explained in between sobs.

"So… Aren't they looking for you? They can't possibly let you go like that, can they?" Sanzo asked as he took a deep breath.

"N-No, they'll probably come looking for me soon. I don't know what to do, Sanzo! I'm at a complete loss…" Goku sobbed tearfully.

"Bakazaru… Come here," Sanzo beckoned pretty fiercely.

Goku wiped his tears away, stood up and moved towards Sanzo. Expecting a slap, Goku shut his eyes tight and faced away. He was awaiting the pain that will be inflicted on him. Well deserved pain for cheating and lying to Sanzo…

A warm and delicate feeling enveloped Goku. His eyes opened wide and looked up out of shock. Sanzo's body was pressed next to his as his arms pulled Goku close. Sanzo ran his fingers through Goku's brown hair and held him tightly. The feeling for Goku was indescribable as he pulled closer and sobbed into Sanzo's shirt.

"I-I care about you too…" Sanzo whispered as Goku clutched his t-shirt.

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_PHEW._ I was thinking a lot about this chapter for awhile. Now it's done! Dances around I think I actually like this chapter the best; and now that this chapter is done, the next few ones would probably be easier, I hope! Remember, if you read, it's only nice that you **review**. Be it good or bad. I think that Goku and Sanzo would only stop at Shounen-ai… I've never written Yaoi before, so it probably won't go onto those lines. Tell me what you think about this chapter! x) You reviewers have been wonderful! So click that review button now! And Chapter Five will be up as soon as I can!


	5. The Unexplained

**AngelKitten23:** Ooh, thank you for reviewing! I love Goku too. Heh. Hmm, I figured if he loves to eat, he must love to cook too!

**RipOutTheWingsOfAButterfly-HIM:** Thank you, I'm glad you liked that chapter! Here comes Chapter 5! And yeah, it _was _kinda creepy! Heh. I hope you'll like this chapter.

**Rubics:** Lady Ami doesn't appear… yet. She will, soon. I'm saving her for a grand appearance! Enjoy this chapter and thank you for your review! xD

**ILovePierreFromSimplePlan:** Ta-dah! Here's chapter 5! Ooh sorry, I didn't mean for the last chapter to be a cliffhanger! xD Thanks so much for the review!

**Luthien-Ikari:** WAIIIIII! hugs and cuddles you're back from Japan! How was it? Okay, anyway, I would **love **for you to draw fan-art for this story. That'll be fantastic. I'll certainly do a filler chapter in the future. Hope you'll like this chapter.

**Koto Juri:** Thank you! xD

Disclaimer: Saiyuki ain' t mine, stop rubbing it in! x)

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"Pack, now." Sanzo's commanding voice said as he stared into Goku's eyes fiercely.

Goku looked around in confusion as he grabbed a box and stuffed foods into it. Sanzo found spare clothes for Goku and dumped them into a duffel bag hastily. Both of them were frantically running around the house and packing the bare essentials.

As they prepared to leave the house, Sanzo plopped on a black hat on Goku and sunglasses which were a tad too big for his face. Goku was about to make a noise in protest, but Sanzo pushed a finger to his lips, silencing him as they locked the door quickly and running to the black BMW, with Goku fumbling behind.

The car sped and took a strange road that Goku never recognized. The air in the car was extremely awkward as Sanzo drove as fast as he could. A sharp turn was made, and Goku slammed into the car door to the left. Sanzo said nothing and continued driving rapidly. Finally, they reached an odd looking yellow painted house with blue windows. A kind looking young man opened the gate and as Sanzo drove the car into the garage, closed the garage door.

Sanzo and Goku emptied the car boot of its belongings and sighed heavily. Goku hardly understood anything that the blonde head was doing. He just rushed off quickly and never said a word or explained what he was doing. It wasn't long before they entered the odd colored house, which was neatly kept and dusted and painted a light blue.

"You must be Goku," The kind man said as he stretched out his hand with a grin.

Goku shook that hand and felt the man's calloused skin. He couldn't find the courage to say anything, especially with the hasty move that Sanzo just made.

"My name is Hakkai, come in for a drink!" Hakkai said with a gentle smile as he led Goku into the living room.

A cream white sofa surrounded the sitting area as a large television was presented in front of the glass coffee table which sat on a white Parisian rug. Hakkai sure knew how to live in luxury for a person living alone.

"Sanzo picked that furniture… It's beautiful, isn't it?" Hakkai said with a chuckle.

Goku nodded and traced his finger on the edge of a gold frame which held a beautiful French painting. He had never seen such a beautiful home in his life. Not even Sanzo's own apartment could compare to this.

"Stop your rubbish, Hakkai; I need to fill you in on a lot of details. We're going to be staying here for some time, if you don't mind." Sanzo frustrated voice boomed as he walked down the hallway and reached from the can of beer from the mini refrigerator in the living room.

"Of course not, of course not… Shinya has been whining for you, as I've said…" Hakkai grinned as a white Persian cat leaped from the cupboard into Sanzo's lap, causing Goku to flinch in surprise.

"Not a fan of cats, are you?" Hakkai asked as his eyes twinkled with laughter.

Goku smiled embarrassingly as he surveyed the area even more deeply. Sanzo looked as if he has fallen back right into his comfort zone. The place where he was at ease; the place where he called home.

Placing his feet on the coffee table, Sanzo passed the cat to Hakkai. He heaved a sigh, before explaining the details of Goku to his long-termed friend who he trusted more than life itself. Throughout the whole explanation, Hakkai only smiled and nodded in understanding despite Sanzo's usual blowups and rage. Goku, however, said nothing while sitting and keep very quiet. He did not want to trigger a bad reaction from Sanzo.

Finally, as Sanzo put out his cigarette, the story ended with Sanzo muttering, 'Stupid bastards… Sick in the mind… and ought to be shot…' Hakkai could only chuckle slightly and gently as he smiled, as always. He turned to Goku, who was looking away, looking nervous.

"Goku, do you mind if I asked you some questions? We need to sort this out quickly." Hakkai asked politely.

Goku nodded in approval before looking at Hakkai.

"Why does Lady Ami want Sanzo? Doesn't she have other men to manipulate?" Hakkai asked in confusion as cleaned his glasses.

"S-She likes him… She thinks he's a different man… One that can bring her more pleasure than others." Goku muttered.

As Sanzo heard this, he flinched and stood up, eyes wide in horror.

"WHO IS THIS LADY AMI? Oh my god… Oh my god…" Sanzo exclaimed as he paced around the room nervously, clutching his fists.

"Sanzo, relax… So Goku, what do you think NESS will do now, once they've found out that you've escaped?" Hakkai asked calmly.

"T-They'll do whatever it takes to retrieve me _and _Sanzo, either kill me, or put microchips in both of our brains. Lady Ami is a sick woman… She only wants to play out her deepest fantasies…" Goku reluctantly said as he fiddled with his thumbs.

Sanzo rubbed his face with his palms and sighed. He didn't know what to do… He didn't know how to fight these people. The only thing he knew was to use a gun… or maybe fight barehanded with a guy or two. He couldn't do much to protect himself, much less Goku.

"I see… So for now, we have to hide, don't we? I don't think Lady Ami's henchmen are going to be knocking at my door anytime soon, do you reckon?" Hakkai asked with a beam as the sunlight shone onto his face.

Sanzo stood up and closed the blinds before checking whether anyone was spying on them.

"I-I suppose not, but we'd be in even more danger if we're on the move… When Lady Ami gets angry, she's very unpredictable." Goku said as he shuddered at the thought of an angry Lady Ami.

"Well, we'd just have to take our chances, don't we?" Hakkai said with a wink.

"Hakkai, do you mind getting me a pack of cigarettes from my bag in my room. I've run out," Sanzo said coldly after searching deep in his pockets.

Hakkai smiled and got up as he picked the cat up from the floor and walked down the corridor, whistling an old song. The air between Goku and Sanzo was awkward, especially after Sanzo lost to his emotions and hugged Goku. It wasn't anything that Goku or Sanzo would expect. Goku wondered if Sanzo meant what he said back then in the apartment. He was in a state of confusion, not knowing whether Sanzo really cared for him or not.

"Goku..."

Goku made a noise in reply while fiddling with his thumbs again.

"Look at me, Goku,"

Goku turned his head and his eyes matched Sanzo's. The seriousness and coldness in those eyes were penetrating Goku's heart as they pierced through the shell of his soul.

"I won't let them take you, Goku,"

With that, another hug was enveloped, with Goku more shocked than ever, but pleased to return the affections. Goku closed his eyes to embrace the moment as tears slowly gathered in his eyes. He was finally loved by somebody.

------

"I've got us some food!" Hakkai shouted happily from the kitchen.

Goku was in better spirits and raced to the kitchen, before tucking in to a black pepper chicken leg that Hakkai had just made. Sanzo poked at his salad and made a sour face.

"Sanzo, do you think we should tell Gojyo about this?" Hakkai asked cheerfully, as if nothing was wrong.

"I-I'm not sure… What do you think Gojyo would do?" Sanzo asked.

"I think he's trustable… Plus he could think of a way out for us." Hakkai explained as he sat down, taking out his mobile phone.

"Do whatever you want…" Sanzo muttered as he waved his hand dismissively.

Before Sanzo knew it, Hakkai finished speaking to Gojyo and switched off his mobile phone.

"Don't want no NESS to trace the phone call… Gojyo said he'll be over in a minute." Hakkai said with a smile as he clasped his fingers together gently. Hakkai was the most patient person Sanzo has ever come across.

"Did you tell him not to get followed or not to be suspicious?" Sanzo asked cautiously.

"Oh, I'm sure Gojyo knows his ways and means…"

It wasn't long before they started washing the dishes as they heard someone fumbling with the door keys. The redhead stood at the door, cursing at the keys.

"These damn keys seem as if they're beginning to rust! Hakkai I swear I have to use them more often- _Look who we have here_?" Gojyo's face churned a sly smile as he saw Goku's small figure bobbing down the hallway in anticipation of seeing who just came through the door.

"I-I'm Goku, Sanzo's colleague." Goku murmured behind Hakkai, uncomfortable with Gojyo's eyes observing him closely.

"Ah, of course, so we _all _are Sanzo's colleagues." Gojyo said with a cunning grin as he dumped his bag aside and shut the door quietly before walking towards the living room where Sanzo was already seated.

As he took out a cigarette and greeted Sanzo, Hakkai grabbed a chair and sat down with Goku standing at the side. The story was elaborated to Gojyo over bits and pieces, with an occasional argument between Sanzo and Gojyo. The sun seemed to be almost set before the story finally wrapped up. Gojyo was left in a faze as his brain accepted the events and linked them up.

"So… You're a clone, Goku?" Gojyo mustered the courage to say.

Goku took a peek out of the window and nodded ever so slightly. He didn't really like the fact that he was a clone even though he had to accept it. His heart was full of confusion and disgrace of himself. He wanted to be normal, not a shadow or a remake of somebody else.

"But you're you, aren't you? You have your own thoughts, your own way of doing things, your likes and dislikes, right?" Gojyo continued to ask.

Gojyo's questions triggered something in Goku's mind. No doubt, he was a clone, but at least he had control over his mind- He wasn't plugged in with the microchip by Lady Ami yet! Goku was _himself_, whoever he wanted to be, however he wanted to act.

"Yes Gojyo, you are right." Goku said as he spun around and smiled gently.

Everyone beamed except for Sanzo, who was flicking his cigarette into the ashtray.

"Why don't we go to bed now? We have a long day ahead of us tomorrow… We need to somehow figure out a way out of this mess. NESS will find us sooner or later," Sanzo said as he stood up from his chair.

"Well, I've allocated rooms earlier on… So yes, let's turn in early. See all of you in the morning." Hakkai said nicely as he went up the stairs.

The rest of the group went to their specific rooms and turned in. However, someone's light was still on…

-----

"Gojyo, what are you doing up? You're supposed to be asleep." Hakkai asked as he opened Gojyo's door.

Gojyo sat on the carpeted floor hugging his pillow. His red hair was tied up high into a ponytail and a strange look was on his face.

"Hakkai, close the door and come sit down."

Hakkai did as told and sat directly opposite Gojyo, whose eyebrows and forehead were creased with anxiety.

"I've been thinking… How can all these be possible? Maybe whatever Goku told us was a lie. He might be just trying to get all of us fired… Or just get Sanzo's sympathy… How can Goku be a clone?" Gojyo shot out whatever was on his mind.

Hakkai sighed and gave a small and gentle smile. He then reached out for Gojyo's face and ran his fingers through his hair before giving Gojyo a very, very small peck on the cheek. Gojyo was taken aback and looked at Hakkai in shock. However, he knew that it was nothing more than care.

"I trust Sanzo. I'm sure you do too, Gojyo," Hakkai said softly.

"Of course I do! I-It's just that I don't want us to be fooled!" Gojyo exclaimed.

"I doubt we're being fooled… But even if we are, let's just go together for the joy ride." Hakkai said rather calmly as he smiled.

Gojyo gave a confused face as Hakkai stood up and whispered goodnight before leaving the room.

Shaking his head, Gojyo slumped onto his bed, thinking, before finally drifting off to sleep.

End Of Chapter.

Sorry this was a short one, guys! xD

I hope you enjoyed it all the same. **REVIEWS **are needed desperately. I'm starting to get writers' block.

I've been terribly busy these days… Uploading for the J-Rock communities over at Live Journal (add me at Live Journal if you have one!), re-playing Final Fantasy 7, meeting up with friends and things like that. oo

So the next chapter… Give it a few days or up to a week. I need ideas and inspiration! xD


	6. The Feeling

Disclaimer: Saiyuki ain't mine, bitches. xD;

_Author's Note: I do realize that the characters are pretty OOC, but it's a modernized fic, and sometimes it is hard to keep track to the original characters. Plus, I didn't really want to totally go in line with their original character, they are just a little different in this story. I hope you guys understand that. –gets bricked- _

**RipOutTheWingsOfAButterfly-HIM:** Thank you, I hope you like this chapter!

**Koto Juri:** Aw, it's alright! Thanks for your review

**Luthien-Ikari:** YAY! Fan art! I actually live in Japan, but I'm overseas at the moment. I'll be going back in December, so I hope to get more stuff. Ooh, please show me when you're done with the fan art! xD If you can, please e-mail me the pictures! I'll be so happy to see it. Oh and if you don't mind, maybe you could do one of Lady Ami? She's such a badass, but I love her in a weird way.

**AngelKitten23**: Oddly enough, I haven't thought much about Lady Ami… Or what would happen to her. Heh, thanks for your review!

**Lady of Infinity:** I'm not sure about the Hakkai and Gojyo part. I doubt anything else will happen… I like to think of them more as… very good friends. x)

**ILovePierreFromSimplePlan:** I know Sanzo's kinda OOC, but read the author's note. ) Thanks for your review.

Chapter 6: The Unforgivable…

-----

The days had passed on quickly for Sanzo and the boys which were spent playing cards, watching television and drinking beer. Sanzo had just ended a drinking game with Gojyo which he had obviously lost. Gojyo, being the king of drinking and gambling wasn't prepared to lose to Sanzo.

Slightly drunk and flushed-face, Sanzo laid on the sofa sluggishly as Gojyo laughed heartedly and threw the beer cans away. It wasn't long before Gojyo went upstairs to get Goku down to take care of the drunkard.

"Sanzo, goodness! Why did you drink so much?" Goku exclaimed as he saw Sanzo lying on the couch.

Sanzo grunted in response as he put a hand over his forehead.

"Damn, I'll get you some hot water." Goku muttered as he raced to the kitchen.

Goku grabbed a towel and filled a bowl with hot water before running back out to the living room. Sanzo laid there motionless as he groaned randomly. Goku began sponging Sanzo's forehead with the towel, attempting to sober Sanzo up, but was pushed away with each try.

"Sanzo, please, I'm trying to help you feel better!" Goku pestered with irritation.

"G-Goku…" Sanzo stuttered out of nowhere. His eyes were closed and he huddled inwards the couch.

"I'm here for you, Sanzo." Goku said as he covered Sanzo with a blanket he found.

Goku kneeled down next to Sanzo and grabbed Sanzo's hand. He pressed it close to his heart and closed his eyes. Tears started to trickle down his cheeks and Goku started to sniffle.

"I-I'm sorry I caused all these, Sanzo… I just couldn't help it. I just couldn't help caring for you… and loving you." Goku said with a whisper.

Sanzo seemed to have heard nothing, but as Goku started to pull his hand away from Sanzo's, a short and strong tug enforced. Sanzo gripped Goku's hand hard, not letting him go.

"Stay with me," Sanzo whispered through his drunkenness.

Goku was taken aback, but relented as he put an arm over Sanzo's warm body. He felt his heart beat faster with life. As time passed, Goku fell asleep next to Sanzo, hand in hand, as the moonlight shone brightly in full.

-----

Goku awoke to the chirping of birds and fierce sunlight. He was up in his room and comfortable in his bed.

"Did Sanzo carry me back here…?" Goku wondered out loud.

He got out of bed and wandered down the stairs and down the hallway. The television was blasting sports news as he saw Hakkai sitting down eating a sandwich.

"Good Morning Goku! Did you have a good sleep? I made some sandwiches for breakfast. Come have some!" Hakkai said with a large grin as he gestured to the food plate.

"T-Thanks Hakkai… Where are Sanzo and Gojyo?" Goku asked.

"Oh, they went out to buy more beer and things like that…" Hakkai said distractedly as he concentrated on his soccer game.

Goku mouthed an 'O' as he reached out for a few sandwiches and brought them upstairs into his bedroom. He was glad he didn't have to face Sanzo so fast. Sanzo might be mad about Goku falling asleep next to him last night… Inevitably, Goku pictured Sanzo scolding him already:

"_You stupid baka! Who gave you permission to hold my hand?"_

"_Baka, baka, baka! Gojyo just asked you to take care of me, not sleep next to me!" _

Goku shuddered at the thought as he chewed his sandwich and took out a magazine that Hakkai showed him last night. It was a Men's fashion and health magazine which had a buff and muscled male model posing.

"God those muscles are huge…" Goku said before pinching his own flesh.

He flipped through the glossy pages of the magazine as he saw articles about clothing. He then stopped at a page about the latest high-end Men's fashion show for socialites to attend. There were beautiful dressed up people everywhere, and even some men wore makeup to those shows! Goku was awed at the sight, before he stopped and analyzed a face before freaking out.

Lady Ami's flawless face stared back at him from the picture.

Underneath the picture was Lady Ami's description.

_Lady Charlotte Ami _

_Age 27 _

_This young lady has earned herself many credits for taking over her parents' company after they were killed in a plane accident. Spotted at the VERSACE FASHION WALK last week, Lady Ami is wearing a blue silk dress with…_

Goku stopped reading and threw the magazine aside. The last thing he wanted to think about or see was Lady Ami. He knew that smile from that magazine, that gorgeous pursed smile that Lady Ami wore whenever she was amused or whenever she had something up her sleeve.

Lady Ami was no doubt beautiful, but she was sick in the mind. Goku and the rest of NESS feared her deeply. She was a cunning and extremely intelligent woman with many capabilities. What she could do to Goku for betraying her, he did not know.

The door knocked.

"Goku, it's me." Sanzo called from the door.

"C-Come in,"

Sanzo walked in and locked the door behind him. Goku was huddled at the edge of his bed and staring into blank space looking really scared.

"What's wrong Goku?" Sanzo asked inquisitively.

"I-I… Nothing,"

"Goku, tell me!"

"Look at that magazine and turn to page twenty four." Goku said.

Sanzo looked and read that page for awhile. His eyes got bigger and he exclaimed in shock.

"THIS is Lady Ami!"

Goku nodded and faced away.

"What the… And I thought she was some fifty year old lady!" Sanzo shouted as he threw the magazine on the floor. "Why does she do all these, Goku? She's so young… She must have many guys after her!"

"I don't know…" Goku replied nonchalantly as he shook his head.

Sanzo heaved a sigh to relax himself as he sat next to Goku.

"Never mind, we'll avoid her at all costs, all right?" Sanzo asked calmingly.

Goku nodded in agreement as he gave a slight and assuring smile.

"A-And about last night… I wanted to thank you, for taking care of me." Sanzo muttered as he diverted his eyes away in embarrassment.

"Oh! No problem… Did you, um, carry me back here?" Goku asked.

"Yeah… I woke up really early so I put you back in your room. You were really heavy though! I carried you all the way up the stairs, you baka!" Sanzo exclaimed.

"Sorry…"

"It's okay… Anyway I'm going down to watch television." Sanzo said casually as he walked out of the door.

Goku sat on his bed and began to think. Sanzo had put him in a state of confusion. He didn't know what Sanzo was planning to do… They can't stay in Hakkai's house forever. Lady Ami will find them sooner or later. He hugged his knees as he sat on the bed and sighed. He wished things could just stay like that forever.

-----

"Goku, GOKU! WE'RE GOING OUT TO GET SOME MORE BEER! WE'LL BE BACK SOON!" Sanzo's deep voice hollered from downstairs.

Goku stirred in his sleep but did not wake up entirely till the door slammed shut. His eyes then opened wide and rushed downstairs. Hakkai was eating popcorn from a bag as he watched a football game.

"Hello, had a nice sleep? Sanzo and Gojyo just went out to get more cigarettes and beer." Hakkai said with a grin.

Goku nodded and looked around the house. He felt terribly unsafe without Sanzo around.

"Want some?" Hakkai offered as he placed the bag of popcorn on the table.

Goku shook his head and sat on the couch. He stared at the television awhile before getting restless.

"I'm going back to bed," He informed Hakkai as he stood up and left.

Within minutes, he was back in bed feeling uneasy. His thoughts expanded more and more after seeing Lady Ami in that magazine. She wasn't going to give up searching for Sanzo and Goku, that's for sure.

Goku threw the covers on and drifted off to sleep once again.

_At The Liquor Store… _

"Sanzo, do you want Belgium beer or Japanese Sake? Sanzo… Sanzo?" Gojyo asked repeatedly.

Sanzo stared out the window with his palm pressing against it. A cold shiver went down his spine. Something felt wrong, very wrong.

"Sanzo, what in the world is up with you?" Gojyo demanded as he walked over to Sanzo and patted his shoulder.

Sanzo turned around in shock and saw Gojyo's annoyed face staring back at him. He grimaced and shot an evil glare at Gojyo.

"Let's take the Sake, and get the pack of cigarettes. No, make it two packs. You'll probably smoke everything by tomorrow." Sanzo said.

"Yeah dude, whatever…" Gojyo replied in nonchalance as he stepped up to the counter to pay for the goods.

Sanzo stepped outside and took a whiff of fresh air. Thoughts clouded in his mind and an uneasy feeling came over him. He felt as if something was going wrong, but he couldn't really figure out what. As he walked to the car, he saw a sleek, black Mercedes car drive past, with someone seated inside that could possibly be…

"…Lady Ami?" Sanzo mouthed out loud.

At that point, Gojyo walked out of the liquor store and dumped the goods into the car. Sanzo then turned around and started mumbling words that Gojyo couldn't understand.

"Calm down, Sanzo! You're talking like you're full of helium!" Gojyo scolded out of annoyance.

"I think I saw Lady Ami in that car!" Sanzo shouted angrily.

"What! Oh please, you don't just see that crazy witch in any old car… And she wouldn't come to this sort of place, would she? Get your senses straight, Sanzo!" Gojyo said.

"What if she's here for Goku? I need to go back to see how he's doing!" Sanzo exclaimed loudly.

"Don't you think she'll send her henchmen to do it instead of doing it herself? And if it _was _her in the car, don't you think she'll already jump out to get vulnerable you who's standing in the street in the middle of no one? Think twice, Sanzo." Gojyo explained rationally.

Sanzo thought for minute and circled around the path, trying to straighten out his mind. Finally, he surrendered.

"You're right, Gojyo."

"Hah! I knew it! Now, let's make a stop at the pub's gambling den so I can win us a few drinks before heading back!" Gojyo said confidently.

"You're so full of yourself, baka!" Sanzo scolded as he pulled on Gojyo's red hair into the car.

With that, the BMW sped off into the sunset.

-----

Goku heard voices speaking to him in his sleep, calling his name over and over again, in mesmerizing voices. Goku stirred and shut his eyes tighter. His chest felt heavy and it was starting to get difficult to breathe.

Suddenly, an image of Lady Ami sprouted in his dreams and Goku immediately sprung awake!

There she was, sitting on the edge of his bed, Lady Ami in flesh and blood.

"Hello, Goku. You seemed to be having a nice dream." Lady Ami's perfect lips mouthed out loud.

Goku felt his whole body go numb as his mind accepted the image that was portrayed in front of him. No doubt, that flawless skin, the perfectly hooked nose and raven black hair and deep blue eyes. Lady Ami, his worst nightmare, was smiling back at him in glee.

-----

Sorry that took awhile! I'm so maxed out now, especially with the opening of a new live journal community and I just joined in on a J-Rock website! Phew. I'm glad people are still reading this. Reviews are very, very appreciated! xD


	7. The Unforgivable

Disclaimer: Saiyuki is not mine, and will never belong to me!

Chapter 7: The Unforgivable

**Rubics:** Ooh yes she has! Hope you like this chapter!

**ILovePierreFromSimplePlan:** Read this chapter to find out! Thank you for your review!

**AngelKitten23:** Thank you for your review. You'll find out what happened to Hakkai in this chapter!

**The Silver Feathered Raven:** Thank you very much for your review, it has made me really happy. I hope you will enjoy this chapter!

**Luthien-Ikari:** Hehe! Here comes the next chapter… You will all probably hate me for what I did to Goku though. ;; Heh. Read this chapter to find out! And as always, thank you for your review!

**Kenny's Butters:** Evil Ami is here! And here's this chapter! Thank you very much for your review!

Chapter 7: The (real) Unforgivable.

-----

Numbness joined with fear usually produces the wrong feeling. Goku felt that feeling in every single inch of his body. The fear tingled through his skin and flesh, eating him alive. His eyes reflected what he feared most to see;

"L-Lady Ami," Goku whispered through his dry lips.

"I'm glad you still remember me, Goku. I was still afraid you'll forget my beautiful face," Lady Ami said in a slow and mesmerizing voice.

Goku was stunned and he lost any words he was going to say. His eyes darted left to right; and he blinked them to check if what he was seeing was real. No matter how many times he blinked, Lady Ami's slender image remained there in front of him, smiling through her devious eyes.

Lady Ami sat in a thinking position and suddenly gasped in pretence.

"Oh! Or did you _not _want to see me, Goku?" Lady Ami said as she stood up from the bed and flipped out her fabric-made fan.

"O-Of course not, L-Lady Ami." Goku stuttered through his broken voice.

Lady Ami walked a few steps across the room and looked around haughtily. Her eyes observed the surroundings and she touched the wardrobe lightly.

"You picked this place, over the grandeur I was giving you?" Lady Ami asked with a slight amused smile.

Goku knew Lady Ami was about to explode in anger. He needed to find a way out, and fast. A few minutes of awkward silence was made as Goku contemplated on how to escape. He considered jumping out of the window, but Lady Ami's bodyguards would definately be waiting downstairs. Lady Ami was not so careless as to come alone to get Goku. He had no choice but to try and head for the door.

Goku got up and darted as fast as could to the door, but was grabbed hard and slammed back onto the wooden floor by Lady Ami. As fast as lightning, Lady Ami's face was on top of Goku's as her cold fingers gripped around his throat tightly, her nails digging into Goku's flesh. Goku could feel her hot breath blowing into his face.

"You are forgetting who made you, Goku." Lady Ami whispered sweetly before giving Goku a big grin.

Goku shut his eyes and faced away as he started to shiver with fear. He knew exactly what Lady Ami was capable of, and he didn't want anything worst to happen. He decided to stay silent and hope for Lady Ami's anger to fade away. But no such luck, Lady Ami dragged him up forcefully as she stood up and slammed him hard onto the wall.

"You deserve the worst punishment for betraying me!" Lady Ami screamed hysterically as she glared at her traitor with her marine blue eyes.

Goku felt his body go limp as his body came in contact with the brick-hard wall. Something inside of him cracked, if it was a few ribs, he wouldn't know. Goku cringed with pain as he attempted to wriggle away from Lady Ami's grasp. It was no use. If Lady Ami could create humans, she could create superhuman strength for herself. Lady Ami turned Goku around and slapped him hard, inducing a few scratch marks left by her nails that started to bleed badly.

"Don't you know I _always_ get what I want?" Lady Ami said deviously before slapping Goku one more time, this time harder than the last. "You should have known better than to run away!" Lady Ami continued before punching Goku once in the face.

"You think you have your own feelings? You think you can finally lead your own life? Think twice, my dear, _dear _Goku! _I _made you, Goku. I will know your ever action, the ever single sound of your heart beat. Have _I _ever instructed you to fall for Sanzo? To think you even dared to act on your own. _You _belong to _me,_ Son Goku. _You_ belong to _ME!_" Lady Ami trailed, shouting out the last sentence.

Lady Ami kicked Goku in his stomach and slammed him hard against the wall again. Goku was starting to lose sense of his body. He felt tired, extremely exhausted. He wanted to sleep, fall into eternal slumber. But Lady Ami would give him no such peace so easily. Lady Ami then grabbed Goku by his hair and pulled his face close to hers.

"You'll never escape from me, Goku. _Never._" Lady Ami whispered and kissed Goku on the cheek lightly.

Before Goku could even reply, Lady Ami smashed his head onto the wall, and Goku blacked out, the pain stinging for a few seconds before fading off.

-----

Sanzo sat at a dark corner smoking away as Gojyo laughed heartedly after winning a round of cards. The pub was buzzing with customers, some being bikers who looked physically threatening to any man. Sanzo couldn't wait to get out of that place.

"You owe me and my friend a jug of beer now!" Gojyo said to a bald and rather muscled man as he turned around and winked at Sanzo.

Sanzo felt his stomach sink, something seems to be wrong, but he couldn't really decipher what it was. A waiter came over and handed Sanzo a mug of beer. As he sipped it, Sanzo felt terribly guilty. The bitterness of the beer lingered on his tongue as he finally figured what he was worried about. He shouldn't leave Goku and Hakkai alone at home.

His heart built with rage and frustration as he watched Gojyo chuckle heartedly as he suffered in his own emotional rage. Sanzo hastily took out another cigarette and lit it up and chugged his beer before slamming it back on the small wooden table, causing a loud bang. Gojyo looked over and signaled to pause the game and walked over to Sanzo.

"The hell is wrong with you! Can't you just be a little patient? I'm still winning beer for us!" Gojyo exclaimed and smirked at the last sentence.

"Fuck that beer! I want to go home now!" Sanzo said and glared at Gojyo dangerously.

"Why? Can't wait to see your little Goku?" Gojyo teased and laughed.

"Fuck off! You better be done with that fucking game in ten minutes!" Sanzo shouted angrily and took another drag.

"Whatever dude…" Gojyo trailed as he walked back to the gambling table.

Sanzo put his hand to his temple and rubbed. His head ached from all the thinking. He knew something was wrong, and he felt extremely uncomfortable and uneasy, but he didn't know what to do about it. The more he tried to think about it, the more his brain would tell him to stop. Sanzo decided to brush the thoughts away for the moment and just enjoy the beer for once.

Finally, Gojyo's ten minutes were up and he knew better than to test Sanzo's patience. Clearing up the game, Gojyo gestured to Sanzo, who angrily stood up and grabbed the bags and walked out of the pub hurriedly. He then waved goodbye to his friends outside the pub as Sanzo opened the car door.

"Hey, why don't you let me drive for once?" Gojyo asked as he stopped Sanzo from getting in the car.

"What? The only person that drives this car is _me_! Now move away!" Sanzo retorted and gave an angry look.

"Please? I'll buy you cigarettes for the rest of the week! I promise!" Gojyo pleaded with puppy eyes.

"Look, you already wasted half of my time. And now you want to lead me into a car accident? I don't think so!" Sanzo replied as he stared into Gojyo's red eyes.

"Come on, I'll even buy you beer for a week! Free beer and cigarettes for a week! You _know_ it's a good deal!" Gojyo begged once again, this time showing a little of a pout.

Sanzo thought for awhile before mumbling a 'whatever' and got into the passengers' seat. Soon enough, a few seconds after they drove off, Sanzo's shout was heard along with the car screeching to a stop, almost colliding with a big blue truck. The truck skidded and almost fell over but luckily managed to turn away from hitting Sanzo's car.

"GOJYO!" Sanzo shouted angrily.

"My bad, my bad, I didn't look at the red light carefully, all right? I was too excited!" Gojyo explained as Sanzo rolled his eyes out of being frustrated.

"Just shut up and drive before I change my mind!" Sanzo scolded before hitting Gojyo's head with a paper fan he folded earlier on.

The drive back home was, thankfully, a safe one. Sanzo's mind raced with thoughts as they drove up the same familiar streets. He recognized the same houses, the same pavements that Hakkai and he walked down when they were done buying the groceries, out buying beer, or just taking a walk and a smoke. His teenage youth was spent mostly with Hakkai and Sanzo didn't know what he would do without him.

Gojyo made a fast turn and drove into the garage of Hakkai's house. Sanzo felt his pulse beat continually. There seemed to be something wrong. He hurriedly grabbed the groceries and walked into the kitchen which was linked to the garage. Gojyo followed behind him and said something about a sports game before running to the living room.

As they entered the house, Sanzo felt a very uneasy air. He placed the groceries on the kitchen table and looked around, trying to figure out what was wrong. The whole house was silent and not a single sound was heard. His heart raced and his stomach sunk. Before he knew it, he heard Gojyo yell loudly for help.. Sanzo ran towards the living room and saw Hakkai lying in Gojyo's arms, a bullet wound in his stomach.

"T-They came…" Hakkai struggled to say as he gasped in between bouts of air.

"Hakkai… No… That means… Goku!" Sanzo cried and took off to Goku's room as fast as he could.

Goku's door was wide open and Goku's cupboard fell onto the floor, with a big hole in his wall. The whole room was badly damaged and he saw drips of fresh blood stains on the floor. Goku's huge wardrobe was also turned over and crashed onto the floor, damaging the tiles. There was a note complete with a small ribbon on the top right hand side of the pink coloured paper, and a flowery scent to it.

_Dear Sanzo, your friend Goku has returned to beautiful me. If you want to see him again, come to Twenty Sixth Elizabeth Street. I promise I won't do anything to harm him until you come… But then again, promises are made to be broken. _

_You know you love me, _

_Lady Ami. _

Sanzo crushed up the note and screamed loudly and angrily. He was overwhelmed with anger and frustration. Sanzo ran down the stairs and saw Gojyo talking on the phone, phoning an ambulance. When that was done, Gojyo held Hakkai close and shook as he whispered in Hakkai's ear. Hakkai was still breathing, but struggling terribly. Sanzo sat down and ran his fingers through his hair. He didn't know what to do and was in a state of confusion. Tears started to well up in his eyes but he blinked them away. He couldn't believe he let this happen to Hakkai. Hakkai was his best friend after all these years and he dragged him into this situation.

They were all left in a few minutes of despair and grief before the ambulance came and whisked Hakkai away to the hospital. Gojyo and Sanzo followed the ambulance with the car speedily and tried to come to terms with what just happened back at Hakkai's house.

"What do we do now, Sanzo?" Gojyo asked monotonously.

"I don't know,"

"They've took Goku, didn't they?"

"Yeah, they said to go to Twenty Sixth Elizabeth Street too."

"Are we going, then?"

"I don't know,"

Gojyo shot a look at Sanzo who creased his eyebrows and blinked angrily.

"You're not going to get Goku?" Gojyo asked heatedly.

"I DON'T KNOW, OKAY!" Sanzo shouted inside the car and banged the stirring wheel with his palm.

"Look, I was selfish and left Hakkai at home… and look what happened. Hakkai was the closest person, like the next of kin to me! I would've turn back time if I could… I really would. I'd go with you, if you're going to face Lady Ami." Gojyo explained as a tear rolled down his cheek.

Sanzo remained silent for a little while as thoughts ran through his mind. He shouldn't have brought his friends into this… It was his fault. He needed to make this right again. Maybe Gojyo was really correct this time. Sanzo needed to stop being selfish and save those who needed him the most, those who stood by him when times were rough. Sanzo needed to find his sense of justice back again.

"Well I guess there's only one thing left to do now, right?" Sanzo asked without a doubt.

"I'm not saying we're going to abandon Hakkai, but he'll be fine in the hospital. I'm sure the nurses and doctors will take good care of him. Let's take a turn now to get some arms from a friend I know." Gojyo said as he tied up his red long hair into a ponytail.

Sanzo made a sharp turn as his tires screeched and speeded towards the town as Gojyo showed him the directions. They drove a while before turning into a very deserted street that seemed to have only one roadside lamp that guided them under the black velvet sky sprinkled with starts. The street would have been exactly how you imagined in the movies. It was dark, the wind was blowing and there were dry leaves rustling nearby. It wasn't a pleasant sight for anybody.

Sanzo and Gojyo got out of the car and locked it. They stood in front of a dark shop that seemed to have an evil aura surrounding it. Sanzo reached out to the doorknob and pushed. Gojyo hastily followed him inside.

The scene seemed to have completely changed as Sanzo and Gojyo stepped inside the shop. The space was brightly lit, loud country music blasting from the stereo, a few tables and chairs with men drinking beer and having a merry time. Sanzo rose and eyebrow and looked at Gojyo who looked equally puzzled.

"You're fucking wasting my time here Gojyo! We need to save Goku! Not come here to gamble!" Sanzo shouted a tad too loudly.

The crowd died down a little and Sanzo and Gojyo found the whole pub observing them thoroughly and dangerously. A scruffy looking middle-aged man stood up from the table on the right and walked towards them. Three steps he took and it was all he needed to identify Gojyo and his bright red hair which separated him from others significantly.

"I know you… Ye that kiddo who won me in cards last year ain't ye!" The man bellowed in his strong country-side accent.

Gojyo merely nodded as Sanzo felt ridiculed in this scene.

"Good lord… So ye finally came to get your payment, eh?" The man asked as he walked nearer towards Sanzo.

"An' this must be your good lad' eh? Hello my man, the name's Scrooge." Scrooge said as he took Sanzo's hand in his own hairy one and shook hard.

Sanzo creased his eyebrows as Scrooge's stench was whiffed by his nose. He smelt of tobacco and ginger ale. At least in Sanzo's opinion, was a very bad combination? Scrooge had thick and sagging facial skin even though his frame was a small one. His nose showed many scars where zits have grown and got scratched out. Grey hair sprouted from this man's head and he covered it with an old golfer's cap. Who on earth was Scrooge?

"'Got a nice firm grip! Trustworthy… least in my eyes! Now come, ya'all shall follow me to the back room! And you guys continue your fun!" Scrooge exclaimed as he led Gojyo and Sanzo through a termite-bitten wooden door.

Behind the door was a flight of stairs down to a dark room. Scrooge lit an oil lamp he grabbed from the start of the stairs and walked down slowly. Gojyo and Sanzo followed, eager to see what big secret was hidden behind the big small pub.

They finally reached the bottom and Scrooge fumbled along the walls and finally hit the switches. It was a flicker at first, but the lights gradually shone bright and strong from the ceilings. The whole room was light blue in colour as Sanzo looked around. Stacks and stacks of machinery, guns and grenades were piled up nicely in glass boxes. Awed as he is, he could have never believed that Gojyo's friend could have such a basement. To think Gojyo made the right choice, for once!

"So pick, now… An' we're even after that ye hear? Don't wanna go around owing anything to ye young brats!" Scrooge mumbled angrily as he took out his pipe and lit it.

Gojyo and Sanzo looked at each other, then at the weapons. They both took a machine gun, as many rounds of refills they could carry, two handguns each with adequate bullets, and a few grenades on the side. Gojyo walked around and looked for something else he could fit into his jacket, and Sanzo did likewise. They both picked a handy silver rifle and a few pocket knifes in case something cropped up.

"An' that's all ye gonna take from me, young lad! I ain't owe you nothing more. Don't ye come knocking at my door again! I've got a business to run ye know!" Scrooge scolded out of irritation as he blew smoke into the air. "Now let's see ye get out the back door. Can't have ye running out of my pub like that!"

Sanzo and Gojyo thanked Scrooge and obliged. They were quickly shown out the back door with Scrooge yelling at them not to tell anyone where they got their weapons from and the door slammed shut behind them. Gojyo glanced at Sanzo and gave a shrug. They both got into the car and drove quickly to twenty sixth Elizabeth street.

It wasn't long before they approached the higher end of Elizabeth Street. It was always clean and friendly here. There was hardly any crime or corruption in this state that Sanzo was entering. He started to wonder if this was the place that Lady Ami did her evil deeds. After all, it was close to work, and Goku seemed to be always running towards that direction after work.

"How are you feeling, Sanzo?" Gojyo asked as he broke the ice.

"I-I don't know… No feelings." Sanzo hastily replied.

"I hate to admit this… But I'm a little nervous. I've never used a gun before, and the fights I've been in were never serious. I don't know if I'll die inside there, Sanzo." Gojyo explained anxiously.

An awkward silence was formed between the two men as they saw the street number '24' appear. They were edging close second by second and they had to be prepared for the worst. It was only when they reached street number '25' did Sanzo slow down and stop the car.

"Let's get out here and walk up to 26." Sanzo said, his palms still resting on the stirring wheel.

Gojyo nodded and said nothing more. It was clear that he would follow anything Sanzo said in this mission.

"At least if they take our lives, they won't take my car… And let's write Hakkai a note to be left in the car. He's smart enough. I'm sure he'll find out what happened even if we did perish under Lady Ami's hands." Sanzo said as he quickly looked around for paper and a pen.

'_Dear Hakkai, _

_If you are reading this, then we are probably already killed under the hands of Lady Ami. We decided on our own to go after her and save Goku. I hope you don't blame us for leaving you at the hospital. Thank you for being friends with us for so long. _

_Yours truly, _

_Sanzo and Gojyo' _

Gojyo bit the pen's tip out of frustration as a tear threatened to roll down his cheek. He didn't want to say goodbye to Hakkai so fast. Sanzo looked away and left the note to Gojyo, who hid it in the small compartment near the driver's seat. They packed their artilleries and got out of the car.

Sanzo and Gojyo were hidden behind the dark shadows of the trees as they moved silently up the street of number 25. Slowly and surely, Street 26 started to come into view. Sanzo's heart started to race as he thought of the endless possibilities that could happen inside that building. He has only one plan in mind, and that was to save Goku.

"Sanzo," Gojyo whispered just before they were going into Street 26.

"Let's make this adventure a memorable one." Gojyo completed his sentence.

Sanzo said nothing and simply looked at Gojyo before quickly moving up to Street 26. There they stood, before the tall and mighty building of Street 26. A dark cloud was cast over them, almost seeming ominous. Sanzo and Gojyo were panting as they reached the entrance. Giving each other a firm and assured nod, they loaded their guns and kicked the main door open with all their strength that their legs could muster.

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End of chapter! Okay, I like to give cliffhangers. I can't deny that. ;; All I ask is for you guys to REVIEW, because it will make me happy! I hope you liked this chapter! The next will be up hopefully soon!


	8. The Rescue

**Koto Juri:** Haha, I hope so too!

**Luthien-Ikari:** Ha, is your sister's name Elizabeth? xD Anyway, thanks for working on the fanart! Awesomeness! Here's your update! Hope you like it!

**The Silver Feathered Raven:** Wow, thank you! I'm glad I managed to keep the suspense there instead of making everything so easy to figure out. Thank you!

**AngelKitten23:** Haha! Hakkai won't die… I think. Well, I can't be telling that to you guys, can I? Hehehe. Enjoy this chapter!

**Athina Dark- Angel Of Death:** Thank you for your review! Here's your update!

Disclaimer: Saiyuki boys don't belong to poor old me.

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The dusty door flung open ferociously as the combined strength between the two boys kicked it hard. To their surprise, the room was empty, with a flight of stairs in front of them heading downwards. Sanzo looked around as he took a step inside; there was nothing but that flight of black stairs that seemed to head down to a room lit with greenish light. There wasn't anywhere else to head. They had no choice. Sanzo signaled to Gojyo who walked in discreetly before the boys rushed down the stairs.

All they saw in front of them was an elevator, showing three levels where it would take them. The green light flickered angrily, as if mocking the intruders. Sanzo rolled his eyes out of frustration and lit a cigarette.

"So what do we do now, Sanzo? Which floor do you want to go to?" Gojyo asked impatiently.

"Let's wipe them out floor by floor," Sanzo said nonchalantly as he blew smoke into the air.

"Do you really think that's a good idea?" Gojyo asked again as he scratched his head.

"Better than going straight into the heart of the devil and then having everyone in this building come at us at once." Sanzo retorted back before taking a few more drags off his cigarette.

Gojyo shrugged and the elevator sounded a 'ding!' and opened its doors. Sanzo and Gojyo walked into the empty elevator and pressed the first floor that was labeled 'C1'.

"What do you think we'll find there, Sanzo?" Gojyo asked inquisitively.

"How am I supposed to know?"

"Come on, think about it! What would we find there?"

"Shut up,"

"Sanzo-," Gojyo began to pester as the lift swung open its doors.

"Shut up!" Sanzo scolded as he walked out of the mucky smelling elevator. Gojyo followed suit and it came to their surprise as they saw…

"…_classrooms_!" Gojyo shouted loudly as he saw rows and rows of tables and chairs through clear glass windows.

"Goku told me the clones were made to learn when they were kept here… This must be the place where they're taught." Sanzo explained as he looked through one of the glass windows.

"You think anyone will be here?" Gojyo asked as he looked around furiously. This place was too creepy.

"I'm not sure… Let's find out." Sanzo said as he ran down the corridor looking left and right incessantly to see if anyone was in the classrooms.

As they ran and ran past the rows and rows of classrooms, Sanzo spotted an odd wedge in between these two rooms. He decided to ignore it and pursued on. Gojyo ran alongside him and it wasn't long before they spotted an odd looking classroom with reddish-orange lights that decorated the ceilings. There were messy drapes which hung onto the walls and mould seemed to be growing on the glass windows, which was a very odd sight. Sanzo stopped in front of the room and peered in, with Gojyo standing behind him.

"Gojyo, look…" Sanzo said with a look of shock on his face.

Gojyo looked through the glass window next and to his horror, found a bloody mess that stained the floor, and also the back of a young blonde haired girl.

"W-What the hell is that?" Gojyo asked in terror as he backed away from the window.

"I have no idea… Do you think she might still be alive?" Sanzo asked as he furrowed his eyebrows.

"I'm not about to find out!" Gojyo exclaimed as he looked at Sanzo in horror.

"Look, we're here to look for Goku. For all you know, that girl might still be alive, and will know where Goku is!" Sanzo explained as he peered through the glass window again.

"Plus, she looks like she's only twelve or so… You don't have to be so afraid! If she's dead, then all the more you don't have to worry!" Sanzo said as he rolled his eyes angrily.

"O-Okay, fine… But if she turns out to be a ghost or something…" Gojyo started as his eyes shifted left and right.

"There are no such things as ghosts!" Sanzo scolded before pushing down the handle to enter the room.

Immediately, a whiff of rotten and bloody air swept past their bodies. It seems as if the room door hasn't been open for ages. The room was full of dust and cobwebs were seen to be forming in the edges of the room. Sanzo and Gojyo coughed harshly as the dust tickled their throats. The room was dark and there were hardly any forms of living in it; not that anything could even _live_ in such conditions!

The blonde girl's back continued to face them and she didn't budge. There was blood nearby where she was and several remains of what seems like a human body. Sanzo refused to let what was seen before him to daunt his spirit; and began to approach the girl. He walked a few steps towards her and tapped her shoulder lightly.

"Excuse me… If you don't mind…" Sanzo started as the blonde girl turned around.

She had the palest face anyone would've ever seen, and she was only a young girl of five or six. Her eyes were bright blue that was outstanding from her pale face. Her hair, a dirty blonde matched her face shape exactly.

"What do you want?" Her creepy voice asked.

Gojyo and Sanzo looked at each other in confusion. What would a small girl be doing in a place like this? And trapped in this odd room too…

"W-We're here to look for our friend… What are you doing here, little girl?" Gojyo asked as Sanzo kept silent and stared at the small figure.

"Your friend…? I have no friends… I've been here ever since I remember…" The little girl said as she stood up and walked around the room.

She was wearing a dark blue sleeveless frock dress which seemed to be stained with blood.

"Who kept you here..? Why did you leave?" Gojyo asked frantically, beginning to sense that something was wrong."

"_She _said it was my destiny to be here forever… She told me that my hunger will be satisfied with whoever that comes in here..." The little girl explained as she looked down. She seemed sad as her fingers traced the table which was placed next to the window.

"W-Well, have you seen a small brown haired boy brought in here recently?" Gojyo asked again as he ran his fingers through his hair.

"I told you… I don't leave this room. And I'm hungry. They haven't fed me in days," The little girl's clear and pitchy voice shot out.

Gojyo put his hands in his pockets and grabbed out a few mints before throwing them towards the little girl's way. With that, she finally looked up and shot them a look with her piercing blue eyes.

"H-Have some candy! I think we better leave now… Nice meeting ya!" Gojyo exclaimed as he tugged on Sanzo's sleeve to signal him to leave.

As they proceeded to turn around and head out the door, Gojyo and Sanzo heard a growling sound from behind them. It was only natural that they turned back.

"I told you that I was _HUNGRY!_" The little girl screamed angrily, her voice changing to a hollow low.

"We better get out of here now." Sanzo instructed as the pair tried to leave.

It was only within seconds before Gojyo felt a weight being hurled onto him and a sharp piercing pain on his neck. He tried to turn around to see what it was, but the pain was too great and Gojyo fell onto the floor!

"Sanzo!" Gojyo screamed for his partner to help him.

"FUCK! That girl's gone mad!" Sanzo shouted as he tried to pull the girl off Gojyo.

"SHE'S TEARING OUT MY SKIN! FUCKING HELL! GET HER OFF! SHOOT HER!" Gojyo shrieked angrily as he fought hard to get the crazy girl off him.

Sanzo loaded his gun and without hesitation, shot the girl in her leg, causing her to retreat from Gojyo and writher in pain. Gojyo finally felt the pain subsidize and took Sanzo's hand to stand up. His neck was sore from that crazy girl's biting and he stared at her small figure which was hunched up in a corner now.

It wasn't long before the little girl looked up towards Sanzo and Gojyo again. Her face had completely changed. Her face seemed to be rotting and the skin was slowly peeling off by itself. Her eyes changed into a moldy green colour, which fitted that of a cat's.

"I'M HUNGRY!" The girl bellowed in a very low voice which doesn't seem to be hers.

"Run," was all Sanzo said as he proceeded to open the door to get out.

Gojyo exited first and then Sanzo, quickly behind him as they slammed the door shut. Once that was over, they were panting and sweating heavily as they heard bouts of pounding and screaming on the door. They both ran towards a corner where they could rest and sit down.

"What the fuck just happened down there? It seemed as if she was trying to eat me!" Gojyo asked angrily as he pressed a hand over his wound on his neck.

"That's probably right… Another one of Lady Ami's experiments, maybe?" Sanzo wondered out loud.

"I don't know man… That woman is nuts! That girl looked so harmless! I thought I could've kicked her away easily! I swear… She weighs even more than you, Sanzo! She's not who she seems to be… What the hell goes round in this freaking building!" Gojyo cursed as he punched the wall out of frustration.

"I don't know… But I think we're about to find out… Prepare yourself, Gojyo!" Sanzo said with a serious voice as he loaded his gun and stood up quickly.

The same girl stood before them, this time looking the same as she was the first time they found her. Gojyo hid behind Sanzo and pointed his gun at the spooky girl. She didn't react to their gun-threats and simply stood there not moving.

"What do you want?" Sanzo asked coldly.

"I'm afraid I have to explain something to you…" The little girl spoke with a voice different from before.

"Y-You're not going to attack me again, are you?" Gojyo asked angrily as he used his gun to point towards his wound.

"Well no, because technically, I've never attacked you before." The girl spoke again, seeming to be much more mature than she really looks.

"What bullshit! You just bit me back there in the room!" Gojyo shouted with irritation. "I'd kill you if you weren't a little girl!" Gojyo said again, this time with his eyes narrowed.

"You should have never gone into that room… It's where Larissa is kept. She must never be let out or visited. Even I don't visit her…" The girl voiced out once again.

"W-Wait, aren't you that girl!" Gojyo exclaimed as his eyes widened in shock.

"Technically I am, and I'm not. We were both clones from the same person. She's the failed experiment. My name's Lila." Lila said as she rolled her eyes.

Gojyo and Sanzo looked at each other and lowered their guns. Lila didn't seem to be a crazy freak that would go crazy on them. Plus she spoke properly… So they probably didn't have to resort to using their guns.

"Glad that you both know the better side of things, I'm not a cannibal, by the way. Larissa was a failed experiment that Lady Ami tried to 'advance human stages' after cloning. Larissa went mad and turned into a cannibal monster. Oddly enough, her face changes whenever she's eating human flesh. Nothing else seems to satisfy her." Lila explained with a bored face.

"Wait… Why doesn't Lady Ami kill her then?" Sanzo blurted out.

"You see… We're both cloned from Lady Ami's younger sister who died years ago due to a bronchial infection." Lila said with her head faced downwards.

"So Lady Ami has a heart after all, huh?" Gojyo sniggered.

"Hold on… Why in the world are you telling us all these? You're part of Lady Ami's league!" Sanzo exclaimed cautiously and brought up his gun once again.

"Well, I figured you'll probably think of that. I'm helping you because I can. I know you're looking for Goku." Lila said as she begun to turn away.

"So what now, are you going to sell us out? Report us intruders to Lady Ami?" Gojyo mocked.

"N-No… I only ask that you save Goku." Lila said with her back facing them. Little did they know that tears were forming in her eyes.

"We don't even know where Goku is held…" Sanzo said as he wiped sweat away from his forehead.

"So you agree to save Goku, then! I'll help you! I'll tell you everything about this place!" Lila replied happily as she blinked the tears away from her eyes.

"Wait, why is Goku so important to you?" Gojyo asked inquisitively.

"Questions will come later… Now follow me!" Lila said as she started to walk quickly towards a dark looking area.

The pair followed Lila's short shadow as they passed Larissa's room. As they walked pass, cries of angst and anger was heard within the room. Throwing of the tables and chairs banged loudly against the concrete walls.

"She's angry again… Because she doesn't get to walk freely as I do. She's lonely," Lila explained with her crystal clear voice and continued walking down the corridor quickly.

After a few minutes of walking, Lila stopped in between two classrooms. It was the same place where Sanzo had noticed the wedge that was stuck in between. Without warning, Lila pushed down the wedge and the wall started to expand with large creaking sounds. Sanzo and Gojyo were shocked and both moved a few steps back. It wasn't long before an entrance opened before them and Lila stepped through it. Sanzo and Gojyo hesitated, not knowing what to do next.

"What's wrong?" Lila asked with her back facing them.

"Wait, how do we know that we can trust you?" Sanzo asked in confusion. This whole scene was getting very bizarre.

Lila turned her head back and gave a slight smile with her hands on her hips.

"Because you have no choice," She answered before running into the room of darkness.

Sanzo narrowed his eyes at Lila's answer before giving the signal to follow her. Gojyo hesitated, but eventually tagged along seconds before the entrance was about to close. As they entered the room, there was no light and only darkness. Gojyo felt around, trying to find a wall where he could lean against. He soon felt something dry and ticklish, maybe like a straw hat. Gojyo tried pulling it, but it wouldn't come off.

"WHICH OF YOU FUCKERS IS PULLING MY HAIR!" Sanzo yelled loudly, ready to blast a bullet into that numbskull's brain as he hit Gojyo's hand away.

"S-Sorry, it was me! I was searching for a wall…" Gojyo replied in embarrassment.

"Does my hair _look_ like a wall to you!" Sanzo retorted angrily Gojyo had tugged hard on his scalp.

"Well no, but that's only _if _I could see." Gojyo said as he rolled his eyes in the darkness.

"You two should really stop bickering," Lila's voice emerged as she lit an oil lamp.

Sanzo and Gojyo's eyes all burned from the sudden light. Lila was sitting on what looked like an ancient Chinese round table, complete with an old Chinese settling inside of the room. There were antique flower vases that stood atop of wooden tables. Even the chairs were bamboo-made. It was a pretty small and cozy room that no one would have ever expected to find inside of this creepy place.

"Sit," Lila instructed as she poured tea into three shot-glass looking cups.

Sanzo raised an eyebrow and continued standing as Gojyo took a seat voluntarily. Lila eyed Sanzo's reluctance and overlooked it as she sipped her tea slowly as Gojyo drank from his cup too.

"Ah, nothing like a thirst quencher." Gojyo sighed with satisfaction.

"That tea will close up the wound that Larissa gave you beforehand." Lila said and gestured to the now-recovering would of Gojyo's.

"Really! Wow, what tea is this!" Gojyo uttered out in amazement.

Before Lila could even reply, Sanzo banged his fist against the wall.

"Are you guys fucking mocking me? I'm only here because of Goku! Don't freaking waste my time!" Sanzo scolded angrily.

"Fine, take a seat." Lila said coolly.

Sanzo didn't have a choice but to plunk himself down onto the hard stool that was made out of sleek rosewood. His firearms clinked against the table as he leaned against it.

"First of all, who the hell are you? You're only what, 5 years old! And you speak as if you're a matured woman!" Sanzo bellowed out angrily.

"I am, to be honest, almost sixty years old. Yes, I am still trapped in this small body. If you want the reason, it's best to ask Lady Ami." Lila explained as she glared at Sanzo as if he said something wrong.

Sanzo more or less understood what she meant by her answer. Strange things happened inside this place… He didn't even want to find out. All he wanted was to get Goku out of the place safely.

"I know you want to save Goku." Lila said as she eyed Sanzo.

"And how do you know that?" Sanzo retorted, refusing to meet her eyes.

"You have forgotten that I am technically Lady Ami's younger sister." Lila said once again as she leaned back and folded her arms.

"Why are you helping us, then?" Sanzo came back with angrily as he slammed his palm onto the table, shocking Gojyo.

Lila remained calm and refused to respond to Sanzo's barging ways.

"Why am I helping you…? Because, Goku… I owe Goku my life." Lila explained as she looked away. Tears started to form in her eyes as they dropped like holy water onto the ground.

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AHA! Finally this is done! Okay, sorry to keep you guys waiting! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! Reviews, please! xD This chapter was a pretty long one! Muahaha!


	9. The Strangeness

Disclaimer: Nope, don't own none of those Saiyuki boys!

**The Silver Feathered Raven:** Haha, thank you for thinking it was creepy, because it was meant to be that way! Yes, after reading your review, I think Gojyo needs more work to. I will expand his character more in future. Thank you for your review!

**I Love Athrun:** Here's the update. Thank you for your review.

**ILovePierreFromSimplePlan:** Hahaha, I didn't get this idea out of any zombie movies. Maybe one day when I'm rich and famous then I'll do a movie off this story! Hahaha! Thank you very, very much for your kind review!

**Luthien-Ikari:** I've never watched Resident Evil! Woah, I didn't expect that chapter to be so freaky! I don't know… because I know what happens and stuff. Hahaha. Well, for the ages of these people… You have to find out in later chapters! By the way, I forgot to reply to your question earlier on; Lady Ami's name is pronounced as "ay-mee". The American way, I suppose.

_Author's Note: Now, prepare for MORE OOC! _

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"His blood pressure is fine; his heart rate seems to be dropping though." A strong and composed voice is heard from a distance.

"Do we inject the medicine as usual, now?" A woman's voice asked.

"I think I have to prescribe another type of medicine for him…" The first voice trailed off.

Hakkai's eyes opened to the bright white lights of the hospital before shutting them tight again. His eyes were burning from the intense brightness of the light bulb after being closed for so long. How long has he been asleep… and where was he?

Hakkai tried moving a finger before bringing his hand up to his face. It wasn't long before he heard a woman scream for the doctor, saying he's awake. Hakkai was oblivious to everything that surrounds him, not even knowing where he was.

"I-I'm alive…" Hakkai whispered as he stared at his hand.

Footsteps were heard rushing into the ward as Hakkai turned slightly and stared at their fac, though, from the way you were bleeding. I wouldn't call it a miracle, but you're lucky you're alive." The doctor said as he sat on the chair beside Hakkai.

"Where are Sanzo and Gojyo?" Hakkai murmured wistfully while recalling what happened.

"Your friends? They called to say that something cropped up and they couldn't be here to visit you or something… And one guy even threatened to shoot us if we didn't take proper care of you," The doctor said as he chuckled to himself and wrote in his log file.

"T-Thank you…" Hakkai said with a forced smile.

"Not a problem. Call me Kogaiji, by the way." Kogaiji said as he tapped his glasses with his pen and wrote into his log file again.

"I'll type out the report now, if you'll excuse me." The nurse said as she left the ward.

Soon, Kogaiji and Hakkai were left alone as Kogaiji continued writing in his log file. He then stood up and walked over to the door to lock it. Hakkai stared at him in confusion, trying to figure out what he was doing. Kogaiji walked back to where Hakkai was and squatted next to him before staring at him hard. Hakkai looked back and furrowed his eyebrows. He didn't know how to react or reply.

"I know your secret, Hakkai." Kogaiji whispered eerily.

"W-What?" Hakkai replied in shock.

"Lady Ami… NESS, Goku… I know everything. I also assume that your friends Gojyo and Sanzo went on to break into the NESS headquarters to save Goku." Kogaiji said as he pulled out a cigarette from his white doctor's cloak and lit it.

"What the- How do you know that!" Hakkai exclaimed in shock, now more awake than ever.

Hakkai edged back onto the bed as he tried to move away from this psycho doctor. Hakkai suddenly felt a piercing pain in his stomach as he attempted to get out of bed quickly.

"You were shot; you shouldn't move around too much…" Kogaiji said as he smoked on the cigarette.

"What do you want from me!" Hakkai asked a little too loud as he moved back to the corner of the room, looking around for things to hurl at the doctor, in case anything happened.

Kogaiji stood up and looked around, before dispensing his cigarette in a cup that was intended for drinking from. He walked towards Hakkai and put a hand onto the wall as his face was right above Hakkai's. The smell of tobacco and antiseptic spray infiltrated Hakkai's nose.

"Lady Ami was my wife, silly." Kogaiji whispered with a slight grin.

Hakkai's eyes widened with shock as he tried to find the words to say. Millions of thoughts were racing through his head at once. Was Kogaiji going to kill him? Was he in league with NESS?

"What do you want from me?" Hakkai shouted as he tried to break away from Kogaiji's tough grasp.

"You have to understand something, Hakkai…" Kogaiji said as he pulled out a knife from his cloak.

Kogaiji placed the blade near Hakkai's throat as Hakkai whimpered helplessly. The cold and smooth steel blade was pressed against Hakkai's hot skin as his blood rushed through his veins, preparing him for the deepeough grasp.

"You have to understand something, Hakkai…" Kogaiji said as he pulled out a knife from his cloak.

Kogaiji placed the blade near Hakkai's throat as Hakkai whimpered helplessly. The cold and smooth steel blade was pressed against Hakkai's hot skin as his blood rushed through his veins, preparing him for the deepest cut.

"…W-What do you want me to understand?" Hakkai stuttered nervously as the blade began to move around his skin.

Kogaiji chuckled and pressed the blade harder against Hakkai's neck. Hakkai could feel the pressure of the steel threatening to slice open his skin and make the blood gush out. Hakkai shut his eyes tight, trying to convince himself that it wasn't going to hurt.

"You have to understand… That I'm no longer with NESS!" Kogaiji bellowed out loudly as he moved away from Hakkai and laughed loudly.

Hakkai was left in a state of confusion as the doctor dropped the knife on the floor and laughed hard and grabbed his sides from all the laughing. It was obvious that the doctor was out of his mind.

"What in the world are you talking about!" Hakkai demanded, now feeling a little less fearful.

Kogaiji looked up to Hakkai before bursting out laughing for the second time. He calmed down after a few seconds and walked towards Hakkai again as he cleared his throat and wiped the tears of laughter away from his eyes.

"Okay, okay, I'll tell you the truth this time… Sorry about just now, I was only kidding. I didn't mean to threaten you with a knife like that. Sit down, sit down… Your wound needs more rest." Kogaiji said as he tried to hide his laughter.

Hakkai limped to his bed and sat down; his face full of confusion. It was only his luck that he woke up to such strangeness. Kogaiji swung the chair over and dragged it near to Hakkai and sat down; his face all red from laughing.

"Alright, let me tell you the proper story now… First, I think I better tell you how I found out you were attacked by NESS. While I was operating on you to take out your bullet, I recognized the very same unique pattern that was engraved onto the NESS bullets. I then checked around with a few old friends from NESS and found out what happened. And when your friends called, I assumed they were going after Lady Ami and Goku." Kogaiji explained in one breath as he smiled cheekily.

"W-Wait… You said that Lady Ami was your _wife_! Why are you telling me all these?" Hakkai asked Kogaiji suspiciously.

"Yes you're right, Lady Ami _was _my wife. I'm telling you all these because… I want to help you." Kogaiji said, a little serious this time.

"Why would you even help me, a person trying to oppose your ex-wife?" Hakkai said as he snorted and looked away.

"Look, you don't really need the knife to understand, do you? NESS ruined my life! Ami told me we could start a big production researching the development of the human cycle! And now… look what happened." Kogaiji exclaimed as he shook his head in disgust of his words.

Hakkai paused as he reflected upon the words that Kogaiji were saying. He didn't know whether to believe him or not… But even if he was, what good could Kogaiji get out of this? Hakkai didn't know… But now, he wanted to help Sanzo and Gojyo. He was mad at them for leaving him behind like that.

"How do you plan to help me?" Hakkai asked with an eyebrow raised.

"Why… I bet you're planning to infiltrate the headquarters as well, right?" Kogaiji replied with a question.

"Whoever made you think _that_?" Hakkai said as he rolled his eyes. He was still pretty annoyed with Kogaiji for trying to be funny with him earlier on.

"Wow, and I thought your friendship with those guys were strong." Kogaiji murmured as he shook his head, stood up, and proceeded to leave.

As Kogaiji started to open the ward door, something prodded Hakkai to stop him. Hakkai wanted to find Gojyo and Sanzo; Goku too. He didn't want any of them to die in there. They still had a big future a head of them… and Hakkai was determined to either save them, or die with them.

"W-Wait," Hakkai muttered reluctantly from the bed.

Kogaiji's lips curled into a smile as he removed his hand from the door knob land lightly stuffed them back into his pockets. He then swung around and leaned against the door, now facing Hakkai, waiting for the latter to speak.

"Fine… I do want to find them, alright? I just don't know how." Hakkai mumbled angrily.

"Now _that's _where I come in! I'll tell you how… It's my chance to bring NESS down, and I will!" Kogaiji said with a small chuckle as he clapped his hands happily.

Hakkai shook his head as he tried to pluck the dripper out of his veins. His vision blurred as the pain kicked in.

"That's a doctor's job, you idiot. More pain combined with your original might make you faint." Kogaiji said before chuckling and removing the dripper from Hakkai's hand professionally.

Hakkai muttered simple thanks and rolled his eyes. He has never felt so annoyed in his life before, even with Sanzo and Gojyo's tantrums here and there.

"You rest here for one more night. Your wound needs it. And tomorrow, I give you the rundown on bringing down NESS. Rest well, and prepare yourself." Kogaiji explained as he proceeded to leave the ward.

This time, Hakkai let him leave without any further questions. He needed all the time to himself that he could get. This was simply too strange. How can he just wake up to find such a crazy man? And it's his doctor, at that! And since when did doctors smoke? This was all getting too crazy for Hakkai.

"I better sleep…" Hakkai mumbled to himself before covering his head with his pillow angrily. And slowly, his mind began to drift off to an unknown realm of peace.

-----

Kogaiji made a cup of coffee in the pantry as he thought about what happened between him and Hakkai earlier on. He chuckled slightly at the thought of how fearful Hakkai was at that point of time. He sat down on the table and stirred a cube of sugar into the hot coffee.

"Now when was the last time I had so much fun…?" Kogaiji wondered out loud to himself as he continued to stir his coffee unconsciously.

-----

**_Flashback: (Note, this part takes place about a hundred years back from present point.)_**

"Guess who?" A crystal clear voice popped from behind.

Kogaiji's eyes were covered by someone's small hands as the person behind him leaned close to him.

"Ami… Come on! Stop playing games!" Kogaiji whined as he removed her hands from his eyes.

Ami laughed as Kogaiji turned around and wagged his finger playfully before tackling her. They both fell onto the grass and laughed out loud, enjoying the best days of their lives.

"You made me wait for an hour!" Kogaiji complained as he frowned.

"Well… That's because I got you a present!" Ami declared with a huge grin as she took out a small parcel from her yukata.

Kogaiji sat at the riverbank, over looking the sparkling water as the sun prepared to set. The birds started to fly back to the trees, chirping merrily.

"What's that?" Kogaiji asked as he put his arms around Ami's neck.

"Hush… It's a surprise. I saved up for three months before buying it! Now, close your eyes… Or I won't show it to you!" Ami said happily as she giggled.

Kogaiji shut his eyes, anticipating the gift that Ami bought him. It has been one year of bliss since he met Ami at the local tea house where she was just a mere waitress trying to avoid getting groped by horny old men, and also attending to the each and every requests of the high and mighty geishas who patronized the tea parties that the tea house held. Ami was often abused by the owner of the tea house, claiming that she worked too slowly and inefficiently.

Soon, Kogaiji felt Ami's hands slip around his neck before feeling a cold hard item pressing onto his neck. Attempting to cheat and peek, Ami immediately shut his eyes again and whispered.

"It's not over yet!"

She then put her arms around his neck again and brought him close to her. Within seconds, Kogaiji felt her soft lips onto his. Kogaiji opened his eyes in shock and backed away as Ami giggled hard, almost falling onto the floor.

"What, are you _that _shy?" Ami asked as she put her hands on her hips.

"N-No… but… erm…" Kogaiji attempted to reply as he gained composure.

Ami laughed again and walked towards Kogaiji before grabbing the chain she just put around his neck. It was a beautiful metal chain with a traditional locket. She smiled gently and looked up at Kogaiji, who was now smiling back with all his gratitude.

"I don't know what I'd do without you, Ami…" Kogaiji murmured as Ami nuzzled him on his neck.

"You smell nice today…" Ami replied, completely out of point.

"I always do, what are you talking about?" Kogaiji retorted with a small laugh.

Ami looked up at Kogaiji, tears threatening to spill onto her lovely face.

"I-I don't ever want to leave you, Kogaiji… You've been so good to me." Ami stuttered as she blinked away a tear.

"You won't ever lose me. I'll always follow you, always be here for you… No matter where you go or what you do, or even if you find me a nuisance, I'll forever stick to you… I love you," Kogaiji whispered into her ear.

Ami's eyes started to water as Kogaiji pulled her close and wrapped his arms around her before kissing her lightly. Ami's heart raced, threatening to burst from the ribcage enclosing it. She has never felt so in love before.

"Forever…" Was what Ami said after they pulled away from each other.

-----

"Forever indeed…" Kogaiji chuckled to himself while continuing to stir his coffee.

His hands found the chain which he still wore on his neck, to this very day, and fingered it aimlessly. He smiled as he thought about how the past… something which he doesn't do very often.

"I'm sorry Ami… It's probably my fault that you became like that…" Kogaiji whispered into his coffee.

"Who are you talking to, doctor?" A chirpy voice came from the entrance of the pantry.

Kogaiji turned around in surprise as he saw the earlier nurse from before.

"O-Oh, no one… What's up?" Kogaiji asked absent mindedly.

"A new patient just arrived from a car accident, we need your help in the emergency room, please!" The nurse announced loudly.

"What? Oh, okay, sure, I'll go there right now!" Kogaiji declared as he stood up from his seat and ran towards the emergency room.

The coffee was left on the table, holding the secret which lies within Kogaiji.

-----

Alright, I had to get this chapter up before I go overseas for 5 days! Thank you for all your kind reviews from before! Much love to everyone! Please, continue to review and tell me what you think! I decided to give Hakkai a little more focus here in this chapter…


	10. The Reason

Disclaimer: You know the drill, I don't own Saiyuki.

**Koto Juri:** Here's the update! XD

**Luthien-Ikari:** Eh, yeah, Kogaiji's a doctor! It's pretty OOC, but I don't care. And no, I'm not saying anything else in case I spoil the rest of the story. hehehe!

**ILovePierreFromSimplePlan:** Yeah, that's the point! OOC rocks sometimes. Anyway, you can find out what Goku did for Lila in this chapter.

**Athina Dark-Angel of Death**: No… The nurse isn't Yaone. Damn, I can't tell you what he did, because it's a spoiler! –evil laugh- Thank you for your review!

_Here's a little OOC from Lady Ami and the author… ME! _

_Lady Ami: Everyone hates me, don't they? Even though I'm so beautiful._

_Me: Well, you ARE a little egocentric. _

_Lady Ami: Excuse me; you're talking to one of the most capable young women of your lifetime! _

_Me: Maybe that's what drove you nuts. _

_Lady Ami: … I need a cigarette. _

_Me: Since when do you smoke? _

_Lady Ami: Since I wanted to! _

_Me: You're over a hundred years old, you need to be healthy._

_Lady Ami: But I certainly don't look that way! _

_Me: You're disgusting. _

_Lady Ami: Thank you, so are you._

_Me: And WHY am I being roped in to the same level as you?_

_Lady Ami: Because you made me. _

-----

Sanzo stared at Gojyo as he lit a cigarette furiously; trying to figure out what the hell Lila was up to. One minute she was acting all high and mighty, and in another, she was spilling tears like nobody's business. Lila sat firmly on her seat, refusing to move or wipe away any tears as they kept rolling down her cheeks.

"So tell us now… How did Goku save your life?" Gojyo asked straightforwardly.

Without turning her head, Lila replied in a very monotonous voice.

"I-It's a long story…"

"We've got the time,"

"NO WE DO NOT!" Sanzo bellowed angrily at Gojyo's unthinking suggestion.

Lila then turned her head back slowly and stared straight into Sanzo's eyes. Her piercing glare matched Sanzo's angry one easily. It seems as though Sanzo has found his match.

"Goku is definitely locked in the underground chamber where Lady Ami resides. I'll bet you that Lady Ami won't do anything to him until you both are present. She's sadistic like that." Lila explained bluntly before looking away.

"So we go down to that underground chamber, and get Goku!" Sanzo replied a-matter-of-factly.

"Look, it's not that simple," Lila started to explain. "Firstly, we need to break through two floors of guarded laboratories. And after that, there are trained and advanced bodyguards that protect Lady Ami; that is, if you are going after her as well. And what I mean by advanced, I mean injected with superhuman speed, strength, whatever you can think of. It's not easy to slip past them! I'm already pretty surprised that they didn't find out that you're here already." Lila finished in one breath.

"We've got all the firearms we need! I'm sure we can blow them out in one breath!" Gojyo exclaimed confidently while raising his gun into the air.

"Try bullet proof humans," Lila stated bluntly and rolled her eyes.

"W-Wait… There's no such thing, is there… bullet proof humans!" Sanzo asked in huge shock as he creased his eyebrows out of confusion.

"Anything is possible here at NESS." Lila said with a polite smile.

Sanzo slapped his palm onto his forehead, trying to make an impromptu alternate plan to save Goku- and get the hell out of here alive. Gojyo scratched his head and heaved a sigh angrily. Why was he even here? His mind was racing through thoughts of his own; trying to figure out why the hell he was helping Sanzo.

"_Because you want to protect what is dear to him," _

-----

_**Flashback: **_

"Loser, loser! You're a big FAT UGLY LOSER!" Voices of his torturer cried out as they all stuck out their tongue and kicked Gojyo.

"Stop it!" Gojyo screamed as he used his hands to shield the kicks and stones that were being thrown at him.

"Stupid ugly loser, you have the ugliest hair I've ever seen in my _life_!" One of the kids stated meanly.

Gojyo started to cry as he hugged his bruised knees and scraped legs. His arms hurt from all the stones that were bricked onto him, and his ribcage threatened to crumble as the bullies piled on more kicks. Tears started flowing out of his eyes incessantly as Gojyo looked around for an exit where he could run away.

"What are you guys doing!" A voice emitted from a distance.

Gojyo's eyes were too bruised and swollen from crying to identify who the person was.

"It's none of your business, golden hair boy!" The bullies stated angrily.

It wasn't long before Gojyo heard people falling onto the floor, groaning in pain, along with a chuckle of laughter that seemed to be anything but sadistic. The sounds faded as time passed; and Gojyo started to feel extremely sleepy. He let his head fall onto the ground, and flew into dreamland.

"Wake up, you sleepyhead!" A clear voice cried out.

Gojyo felt a paper fan hitting him constantly as he tried to wake up from his slumber. Two cubes of hard, cold ice penetrated his eyelids as they melted from the heat of the sun. Gojyo brushed the ice cubes away absent mindedly as he tried to sit up. His body refused to obey him and they continued lying stationary on the ground.

"Don't try to sit up. I've looked at your back; it's full of bruises. Maybe a rib or two was broken." The voice said plainly.

Gojyo opened his eyes and immediately came face to face with the sourest looking face ever. He had the hair of a golden sun, eyes of a lion, and permanent creases in between his eyebrows from frowning too much.

"W-What…?" Gojyo asked aimlessly.

Immediately, he felt the paper fan slap his face one more time as he tried to ask a question. Another voice came from behind and told the guy to cool it.

"Relax, Sanzo… He probably doesn't even know where he is!" The voice said and laughed.

"S-Sanzo…? You're that guy from school!" Gojyo said as he recognized the name. "And Hakkai… the chess club member who always tags along with Sanzo!"

The paper fan slapped his face again and Gojyo heard a snort.

"What do you mean tag along! Be thankful that I even saved you!" Sanzo said angrily.

Hakkai tried to help Gojyo sit up by supporting his back. Gojyo immediately groaned from the pain and rawness of his wounds as he leaned against Hakkai's strong hands. His own hands reached out to his head to stabilize the spinning of his mind.

"Why did you save me?" Gojyo asked as he looked at Sanzo.

"Because I could," Sanzo replied bluntly.

"Well thanks… I guess," Gojyo said in confusion.

"We'll help you home!" Hakkai exclaimed cheerfully as he put an arm around Gojyo to help him up once again.

Sanzo smirked and did the same reluctantly after persuasion from Hakkai. The pair carried Gojyo to the roadside and waited for the traffic to pass. As they prepared to cross the road, a black car sped across them, with a big logo on its back stating 'BMW'. The trio was swept away by the speed of that car as their eyes followed the car until it disappeared into the distance.

"I sure must get a car like that one day…" Gojyo and Sanzo said in unison before looking at each other with dagger eyes.

"Well then one of you will have to send me around then!" Hakkai commented innocently with a slight smile.

Gojyo and Hakkai began to chuckle as they crossed the road; and Sanzo himself couldn't help but stifle a laughter.

-----

A dry slap was felt on Gojyo's head as he snapped back into reality. There Sanzo was, a foot on the chair with his paper fan.

"Would you please _concentrate_!" Sanzo scolded out of frustration as he kept back the paper fan.

Gojyo shrugged and focused back at Lila and Sanzo as they continued to discuss the plan for saving Goku.

"Wait, wait… You still haven't told us why you want to save Goku!" Gojyo suddenly exclaimed, feeling pretty smart.

"Do we really have time for this?" Sanzo blurted out irritably.

"Well yes, in fact we do. If this young man wants to know my story, I shall very well tell him." Lila said as her eyes pierced through Sanzo's fiercely.

Sanzo rolled his eyes and lit a cigarette before looking away and shaking his head. He couldn't believe that Gojyo was still in the mood for little tales and stories like these. Gojyo, in return, leaned in close to Lila in anticipation of her side of the story.

_**Flashback in Lila's POV: **_

It all began on the day I was cloned… I don't remember when, all I remember was being trapped in a glass capsule for a long, long time… Whenever I opened my eyes, I saw blue, green, red, all sorts of rainbow colours rushing through tubes in the capsule. I don't know why, but I never tried to scream or break out of that place. All that was going through my mind was to wait. It finally happened one day, and I felt my pulse race, as if giving me a premonition. I remember closing my eyes, pretending to be asleep as the capsule raised its mighty doors. And then, I was given my first breath.

My lungs screamed to be relieved of the pain as the air gushed through the bronchioles and diffused into the blood capillaries. My brain suddenly started pounding and I couldn't stand up, not at all. But it was then, at that very moment, a hand reached out to me.

It was small and callused hand reaching out to me. As if by instinct, I reached back and pulled on that tiny figure. The warmth overwhelmed me, as if an electric bolt jolted my nerves and senses, I stood up and got out of the capsule. In front of me stood a boy with brown hair and the rosiest cheeks I've ever seen. He said nothing and immediately draped a brown robe over me. Words failed me, and all I could do was stare.

Goku's eyes were the most sincere I've ever seen. Through his eyes, I saw a whole different meaning of life. It wasn't long before Lady Ami took me under her wing, and I never saw Goku again. But never once did I not think about him.

I think it was the summer of the second year after I was cloned and given my new life. I was then introduced as "Lady Ami's adopted younger sister" into her high end socialite life. Everyone treated me with respect and care, but I wasn't happy, I never was… I knew that my life was to be spent serving Lady Ami and whatever purpose she had for me, but I felt there was something bigger out there to be explored.

Then it came, that fateful day.

I was once again hooked arm to arm with Lady Ami as we walked down glamorously down the red carpet at some awards show that was insignificant to me. I felt like Lady Ami's accessory, and I probably was. As I walked down the carpet and was blinded by the ongoing flash of photographers, I gripped Lady Ami's arm tighter, as if to seek comfort and assurance… But when I looked up to her glowing face, she paid no attention to me and continued smiling at the cameras and waving like a queen.

I envied her so.

The awards show came and went and soon I was brought to the after party by Lady Ami. I was instructed to sit in a corner as she clink champagne glasses with the other celebrities and important guests. I sat down, body as stiff as a rock, obeying my order as my eyes followed the designer-clad people walking around socializing. A tall and muscle built man walked up to me and smiled. He had dirty blonde hair and a earring on the left ear.

"Who are you here with, little girl? My name is Eric." He introduced himself and asked me casually.

"My sister," I answered quickly, wanting to shake this dude off.

"Now… Who's that?" Eric asked again, flashing me a pearly white smile as he sipped from his champagne glass.

I pointed towards Lady Ami and sighed.

"So you're Lady Ami's sister? Interesting… Wait here," Eric said as he made his way through the crowd and whispered something in Lady Ami's ear. She then immediately made her way back to where I was with Eric.

"Lila, darling…" Lady Ami said and kissed me quickly on the cheek. "You follow Eric back into the hotel room, alright? I will pick you up in the morning. Be good and do what he says!" She finished and gave me a death glare.

I wanted to protest, but couldn't, and reluctantly followed Eric into the penthouse suite that the hotel carried off wonderfully. The double doors opened to a room of splendor, a four poster bed with golden poles, a huge spa Jacuzzi in the bathroom, and everything was neat and decorated fabulously. Eric threw his keys onto the table and went into the bathroom and washed his face.

"Close and lock the door, then take off your clothes and lie on the bed." Eric commanded from the bathroom.

I did as told, but only because Lady Ami told me to obey him for tonight. I couldn't refuse or rebel. I struggled to fight against my mind, and tears streaked down my cheeks as I tore off my clothes. I didn't know why, but I cried. My heart felt guilt ridden as I lay on the bed and waited for Eric to come back into the room.

It wasn't long before he came back and did the deed. Throughout the whole event, I stared at his excited face as he devoured me like a ravaging grey wolf. He smoked a cigarette after that, and all I could do was watch the cigarette smoke rise slowly into the air, twirling around his face. He grinned at me as he noticed my eyes penetrating his soul. Rage was all I felt. Staring at a fruit knife on the table, I didn't know whether to kill myself, or kill him.

He slept after an hour, and I found the courage to sneak out of the room. As my two bare feet touched the ground outside of the room, I began to run as fast as I could all the way up to the roof top. The hard ground had turned cold from the night and my feet welcomed the frost bites eagerly.

I took up step up the edge of the roof top and looked down. The roads were still so busy at this time of the night. I cringed at the thought of mankind. How could I be born to such a horrendous life? Was all of mankind really this way? If it was, I couldn't bare to take this anymore… I didn't want to continue listening to Lady Ami, or do anything else for her. If I couldn't live my life the way I want, at least I could end it.

My petite body stood at the edge of the roof, preparing for the jump. I closed my eyes and counted to ten. And at ten, I would jump without hesitation.

"…TEN!" I yelled loudly and stepped off.

I felt the wind brushing hard against my skin as I felt myself drop rapidly. Suddenly, the butterflies in my stomach were no more and I opened my eyes. I wasn't even falling to the ground. Anger struck me and I looked behind.

There he was, the first person that pulled me into life, pulling me right back into reality. I was suspended in the air as Goku tugged on my hand hard, refusing to let go. He eventually pulled me up onto the roof.

"W-WHY?" I screamed as tears rolled down my cheeks.

He shook his head and handed me a bunch of tissues which I threw aside and fell onto the ground, crying. I felt naked, naked like a new born baby that has been raped of her innocence. My life just seemed to be an everlasting lie.

"Don't do it," Was all he said as he led me to a corner to cool down.

I spent the rest of the night crying on his shoulder as he comforted me and taught me ways to deal with Lady Ami and not let surrounding things get to me. Goku taught me a whole new meaning of life as he looked innocently at me and told me he will try his best to help me. I couldn't even think about dying after how Goku saved me.

"At least live for me, and the rest of the people back at NESS. We know what you're going through, and one day, we'll all be happy." He explained with a soft tone.

I could only look at him and nod as my eyes brimmed with tears. I didn't know what to think, then, but I know that I'll continue living, just for him.

-----

APOLOGIES! I know this chapter took a long time, but I had to think a lot. I even made a little OOC part for Lady Ami and Me! –evil grin- I hope you guys liked this chapter. It's a little different, but it took some work. PLEASE READ AND REVIEW!


	11. The Green Liquid

Disclaimer: I don't own Saiyuki, and damn am I bored of saying that!

**Koto Juri: **Thank you for your review! I didn't really think my story was sweet. XD

**Luthien-Ikari: **Aw, come on, don't degrade yourself! I'm sure your stories are awesome. I'll check them out later. Oh yes, the BMW… It's just a little side amusement to the story. Yay! Thank you for your review!

**Plague Rose: **Uh, it's at the starting of the story… Anyway, thank you for your review.

**AngelKitten23: **Wow! Thank you for all your reviews… Yes, I am pretty much a Harry Potter fan… I watched the fourth movie a week or two ago. It was pretty good!

**Rozanna: **Wow, it's amazing that you reviewed on all the chapters! I loved ALL your reviews, thank you so much for reading!

**ILovePierreFromSimplePlan: **I hate raping too… But Eric was horrible, and he needed to do something horrible! –evil laugh-

_Lady Ami: You know they're no match against me…_

_Me: You're not even supposed to know that! _

_Lady Ami: Why not write up a nice love story for me? _

_Me: You already had enough scenes! This whole story is about you! _

_Lady Ami: There can never be enough of me! _

-----

The awkward silence filled the small room as Lila wiped a tear away from her eye. Her tale has ended, long ago, and both Sanzo and Gojyo looked at Lila in awe. Stunned at how her tragic story had unfolded, they both could not force a word out. Even Sanzo furrowed his eyebrows in concern and disregarded his cigarette.

"So yeah, that was it…" Lila said as she stood up and walked towards a cupboard.

"I-I'm sorry… I had no idea…" Gojyo stuttered as he messed with his hair.

"It's fine, don't talk about it anymore. Here, drink this." Lila commanded as she took out two vials of acid green liquid. There was no hot bubbling smoke, but just a certain kind of rainbow air that floated around the top of the vial.

By instinct, the both boys refused to even touch the vial; it looked like a dishwashing liquid, or something you would give to your sick cat.

"Do you want to save Goku, or not?" Lila asked impatiently and huffed.

After that sentence was said, Sanzo grabbed the vial and downed the green liquid without hesitation. Gojyo followed suit, and soon enough, both of them were on the floor grabbing their stomachs. Sanzo and Gojyo could feel the hot green liquid starting to bubble in their stomach, and passing through their veins quickly. Their muscles seemed to be expanding, stretching out their limit, as their chest starts to harden up, and making it too difficult to breathe.

"W-What…" Sanzo uttered out of breathlessness.

"Do not worry, it will pass soon," Lila said with a wave of her hand and walked towards her cupboard once again.

Both boys were left panting on the floor, recovering from the pain they had just experienced. Sweating till the floor was stained, they each tried getting up, but to no avail. Their muscles wouldn't budge and their feet wouldn't obey. Sanzo glared at Lila angrily, trying to figure out what the hell she was doing to them.

Lila brought out a black box and placed it on the table. Opening it, she brought out an item wrapped in a leather bag. A gun, she held in her hand, as she pointed it to both Sanzo and Gojyo.

"Lila… I-I thought you were on our side?" Gojyo muttered out within bouts of gasps of air.

"I am, and I'll always be, do not worry, this is for your own good, boys." Lila said as she gave a smirk and leaned forward to point the gun at Gojyo's chest.

"What the fuck… Lila, you said you wanted to save Goku!" Sanzo cried out angrily, shocked at her betrayal.

"I do, who ever said that I changed my mind? On second thought, I think I'll shoot _both _of you together!" Lila said happily as she retrieved another gun from the black box.

Sanzo and Gojyo looked at each other in the shock of being betrayed. They should have never trusted Lila so easily… She was, after all, part of NESS.

"I'm sorry…" Sanzo said and looked at Gojyo.

"I'm sorry too," Gojyo replied with tears forming in his eyes. "I never wanted it to end this way…"

They both shut their eyes tight as Lila came over with the two guns and pointed each of it directly at their hearts. She gave a smile of pride and kissed both boys on their foreheads.

"Be strong, and courageous, after all, that's what got you both so far."

With that sentence, Lila fired both guns right into the core of their bodies.

-----

Hakkai looked around impatiently as Kogaiji prepared guns and the rest of the weapons in his secret room at his house. Kogaiji discharged Hakkai a few hours ago, and brought him to his big house that was complete with an indoor swimming pool and a pet dog. Hakkai wasn't one to be impatient, but when it comes to saving his two friends, he didn't want to be too late.

Kogaiji armed himself, before arming Hakkai, whose body seemed to take the weight of the armory very well, in fact, it seemed pretty light to Hakkai.

"Wow, for a doctor to be keeping these…" Hakkai commented as he stroked the guns.

"Well, we never know when Lady Ami will attack me out of sudden anger, do we?" Kogaiji asked as he chuckled and put a few grenades in his pouch.

"Do we really need so many weapons?" Hakkai asked with a frown. He didn't like the idea of killing, but when angered, he could easily kill anyone in his sight.

"The answer is yes, if you want to go up against NESS, my dear patient." Kogaiji said with a slight smile as he walked into the kitchen, with Hakkai following.

Kogaiji threw a can of beer to Hakkai, who easily caught it.

"Nice reflexes," Kogaiji commented and grinned. "You don't want to be totally sober while entering NESS headquarters. Bottoms up!"

Kogaiji and Hakkai both opened their beer cans and emptied the can in one big gulp. They both burped a loud one after that, and Kogaiji patted Hakkai on the back.

"Not too bad for a boy who I thought was a sissy, eh?" Kogaiji said and laughed.

"What the- Excuse me!" Hakkai demanded.

Kogaiji laughed and walked out of the house and into the garage. He loved teasing people, maybe to liven up their mood before things get serious. Starting up his car, he motioned Hakkai to get in. The engine roared as they sped out of the house and down the road.

Hakkai observed the sun set in the beautiful open horizon... The clouds were shaded a light pink colour and a tint of orange covered it well.

"_This may be the last sunset I see today…"_ Hakkai thought to himself.

"What's got you thinking?" Kogaiji asked as he glanced at Hakkai quickly before concentrating on the steering wheel, driving quickly past the busy city.

"I wonder… I wonder how Gojyo and Sanzo are…" Hakkai murmured, his chin resting on his palm.

"Do you think they're dead?" Kogaiji replied straight-forwardly.

"I would feel it, right? If something happened to them?" Hakkai questioned himself.

Kogaiji laughed a bit and continued driving, edging a right turn into Elizabeth Street. It seemed to have a dark aura around it, at least in Hakkai's eyes. The trees shaded the tall buildings that seemed to tower high above Hakkai and Kogaiji. The car drove past the buildings quickly and suddenly halted at a stop at street 25 when Hakkai shouted 'Stop!'.

"What's the matter? We're almost there! It's only a street down… Why, chickening out now?" Kogaiji asked as he reversed and parked his car.

"N-No… I saw Sanzo's car!" Hakkai exclaimed and got out of the car quickly before running towards the black and sleep BMW.

Kogaiji exited the car after him and stood behind Hakkai's skinny figure.

"I know I have a spare key somewhere… Sanzo left it with me before he left… Ah! Here it is!" Hakkai said and pulled out a key from his pocket as he unlocked the car and got in the driver's seat, searching around the compartments.

"I knew it," Hakkai stated as his hands held onto a white piece of paper.

The note that Gojyo and Sanzo left behind was now being read by Hakkai. He furrowed his eyebrows as his eyes picked up each and every word. Biting his bottom lip, unable to take it any further, Hakkai banged his palms onto the honk, causing a loud sound to emit from the car.

"What the fuck, Hakkai? Do you want to alert everyone here!" Kogaiji cried out loud before pulling Hakkai out of the car and slamming the door shut.

A slap sound was heard, as Hakkai grabbed his stinging cheek, tears rolling down his cheeks angrily. Anger grew in his heart second by second, threatening to turn him into the monster of anger that was almost never shown. Hakkai grabbed Kogaiji by his collar and slammed him onto the fence and shook angrily.

"I want to find them, Kogaiji… I WANT TO FIND THEM!" Hakkai shouted angrily before releasing Kogaiji.

"And we're doing that right now, you idiot! Anger's not going to help you now!" Kogaiji retorted before brushing himself off.

Hakkai said nothing and wiped away his tears. He couldn't believe how little faith Sanzo and Gojyo had in themselves. Had they not even thought about returning to him, reconciling their friendship? Thoughts ran through Hakkai's mind as he raced up the street to the headquarters, with Kogaiji guiding him. The wind brushed across Hakkai's face fiercely as he approached the foreboding door of NESS which was wide open.

"This is odd… It shouldn't be open…" Kogaiji stated and walked through. "It seems like the alarms are switched off, too."

"I don't care… Just get me to Sanzo and Gojyo now!" Hakkai said and took a big step into the room.

The pair took off down the flight of stairs, chasing down the same path that Sanzo and Gojyo once took.

-----

_Author's note: I was contemplating whether to leave a cliffhanger, or just continue… And I decided to continue! So yay me! _

The bullet rebounded from their muscles, causing a hard, bruising pain, but it's definitely something better than a real bullet wound. The pain arched towards every part of their bodies, and all of a sudden, they were able to move again. Sanzo and Gojyo stood up, both bewildered at what just happened. They looked at each other in confusion, before cornering Lila angrily, bombarding her with questions.

"What the hell just happened?"

"What did you do to us!"

"Why are you doing this?"

Lila gave a cheeky smile before bursting out in laughter, pointing at Gojyo and Sanzo's stunned faces. She reached out to Sanzo's chest and pinched a little at his chest muscles.

"My, looks like the potion worked well on you." Lila said and snorted before walking over to the seat and sitting down, patting the chairs beside her. "Come sit, I'll explain everything."

"Look, we're not falling for anymore of your tricks! I demand an explanation immediately!" Sanzo said angrily, his eyes widened.

"Fine, but I'll only explain if you sit down and calm yourselves down." Lila argued and continued patting the chairs beside her.

Gojyo and Sanzo had no choice but to walk over and sit down on the chairs. They stared at Lila angrily, contemplating whether to kill her or not.

"The green liquid that I gave you earlier on was the human advancement potion, made by NESS. No ordinary human would ever be able to surpass NESS guards. So the liquid you drank advanced your strength, speed, and reflexes and also gave you bullet proof skin. This potion is kept in the safest of rooms, where no one can easily access it, and only given to the strongest of guards or clones." Lila said with a huge grin on her face, as if she accomplished something huge.

"THEN WHAT'S WITH THE BLOODY GUN!" Gojyo shouted out of frustration.

"Relax, Gojyo-chan, the gun was just to test if your muscles were reacting well to the liquid I gave you," Lila replied.

"And what if it didn't?" Sanzo retorted with an angry glint in his eye. He felt as if Gojyo and he were play toys for this little girl, only that she was 60 years old.

"Then it's too bad," Lila started, "I knew the potion would work anyway, just wanted to give you boys a little scare." She finished and giggled.

Sanzo and Gojyo both stared at Lila, both speechless and not knowing what to say; a part of them wanted to tear her apart for playing around, and another part of them wanted to thank her.

"So we still going to save Goku or not?" Lila asked impatiently and put her hands on her hips.

"Of course!" Sanzo retorted without hesitation.

Gojyo nodded in agreement as he stood up and reloaded his guns. Lila gave a triumphant smile and patted both men on the back before walking to the door.

"Are you ready for this battle?" She asked and gave a piercing stare.

"Definitely," Gojyo replied.

"Then we are ready to go,"

With that, the door swung open, to the same pathway where the pair met this slightly deranged girl.

-----

YAY! Chapter 11 is done! I didn't have much inspiration lately; until I thought of more menacing things to write about. –giggles- I could've left you guys at a cliffhanger, but I didn't! YAY! Thank you so much for reading this story up to this point, in all honesty, I don't know when it's going to end. So for now, please continue to read and review!


	12. The Misfortune

**Luthien-Ikari: **Goku will appear soon… Have patience! XD And wow, you actually guessed a bit of the story!

**AngelKitten23:** Polyjuice potion! This is so interesting. But Lila's a really kind person, even though she's rather creepy.

**ILovePierreFromSimplePlan: **Action is in this chapter! Thank you for reviewing.

**Rozanna: **Sure, you can give me any of your fiction to read. I'd be more than happy to. Thanks for your review!

Disclaimer: You know the drill. I don't own Saiyuki.

-----

Sanzo and Gojyo raced down the familiar hallway, with Lila leading the path. They came back to the elevator and pressed the button. A feeling of uncertainness overcame Gojyo as he stared at the elevator door. His heart pounded loudly within his ribcage as he thought about everything that could happen. What if they don't get out alive? What if they don't even reach Goku?

"Relax, Gojyo-kun, we will be there in no time," Lila comforted as the elevator made a 'ding' sound.

"Yeah, _that's_ what I'm worried about!" Gojyo retorted as the elevator door swung open.

As the elevator door opened, two gun-clad men came face to face with the three. Both parties had their faces in shock and surprise and immediately drew their guns.

"M-Miss Lila, what are you doing with these people! They don't look like members of NESS to me!" The first burly man with a small goatee said loudly.

"They are new guards. Now leave us in peace before I complain to my sister!" Lila exclaimed and began to fake-cry.

"O-Oh, okay, okay, please don't complain to Lady Ami! We're sincerely apologetic! We're so sorry!" The second man said as he put down his guns.

"If you'll excuse us, we'll go attend to Miss Larissa now," The first man said again and exited the elevator with the second.

Lila heaved a sigh of relief as Sanzo and Gojyo walked into the elevator. They continued holding their guns in case of any more surprises.

"So why didn't we kill them?" Sanzo asked irritably.

"We want to lie as low as possible! You will now pass off as my new guards until I tell you to kill. Till then, keep your guns away and do not speak a word to anyone you might see." Lila commanded and pressed the button for the floor below them.

"Oh darn, now we're Lila's little pets." Gojyo snorted and commented.

"Or would you rather be dead, Gojyo?" Lila asked and shot a look his way.

Gojyo said nothing and the elevator once again opened to a new level. This time, the hallways were brightly lit with blue-white light. In the different rooms and compartments, there were rows and rows of laboratories, scientists in white cloaks and huge transparent glasses. As the three of them walked past, several people stared, but did nothing. Sanzo and Gojyo did their best not to look too amused or horrified by whatever that was going on, but it was hard not to.

As they emerged further down the corridor, the scene seemed to shift to a darker room. The bright laboratories were replaced with glass capsules, and water rushing through it constantly. Different colours ran around the water and human bodies of different shapes and sizes lay in there waiting to be awaken.

"These are the clones," Lila whispered to both the wide-eyed boys.

Sanzo and Gojyo looked at the clones in wide eyed wonder. They were all naked, those who were still growing, were even missing some body parts. It was a terrific, yet horrific experience at the same time. Gojyo peered through one of the glass capsules with what seemed to be a fully grown clone, when out of nowhere; the clone opened his eyes wide.

"UGH!" Gojyo shouted out of shock and backed away, knocking into some scientists' tools and causing a rather big commotion.

"Oh my god, you idiot," Lila exclaimed and helped Gojyo up immediately. "They'll be here to check any minute… Better leave, now!"

Gojyo got onto his feet quickly as Sanzo cursed and swore at Gojyo's foolishness. The three of them were preparing to leave the scene quickly before a voice stopped them.

"Hold it!"

That voice was vaguely familiar to Lila even though it was a male's. The voice was strong and deep, and seemed to carry a huge sense of responsibility with it. Lila turned around and immediately recognized the man in front of her and bowed deeply. Not knowing what to do, Sanzo and Gojyo bowed as well in order to keep up their performance.

"Greetings, Doctor Ryuu," Lila said to the tall, tanned bespectacled man with brown hair.

"Miss Lila…" Doctor Ryuu started with a slight tone of sarcasm in his voice. "Who are these two… minions, of yours?"

"New guards of mine, my sister assigned them to me!" Lila lied as she matched eye to eye with Doctor Ryuu.

"Not intruders… I hope?" Doctor Ryuu smirked and walked closer to examine Sanzo and Gojyo who stood still as stone.

"Just _freshly cloned_, Doctor Ryuu!" Lila explained and rolled her eyes out of frustration.

"Oh, really," Doctor Ryuu commented and circled Sanzo and Gojyo. "Freshly cloned till… they don't even have the NESS mark!" Doctor Ryuu exclaimed all of a sudden and pulled out Sanzo and Gojyo's bare wrists.

Out of panic and not knowing what to do, Lila lost her nerve and shouted loudly.

"KILL, NOW!"

Gojyo and Sanzo immediately retracted their hands and whipped out their guns to point at Doctor Ryuu's temple in inhumane speed. The doctor simply chuckled and pointed two guns at their stomachs.

"Fast reflexes, not bad… Lila, have you taken to betraying your own sister!" Doctor Ryuu asked with an evil glint in his eye.

"I have my reasons for doing whatever I'm doing!" Lila exclaimed loudly and glared angrily at the doctor. "And you, you can't live for all the harm you've been causing!"

"For me, being the head of research in cloning, I am only doing my job… And these two intruders will die, and of course you will be severely punished by your sister… While I will be tremendously rewarded!" Doctor Ryuu chuckled and edged the guns more forcefully into Sanzo and Gojyo's stomachs.

"Try it," Lila challenged.

"Don't ever doubt me," Doctor Ryuu said and fired two shots into their stomachs.

The bullets automatically bounced back, and dented the gun on impact. Doctor Ryuu, out of surprised, moved back and stared wide eyed at the three of them. Sanzo and Gojyo wasted no time and immediately pointed their guns to Doctor Ryuu's forehead.

"You dirty little… You gave them the potion!" Doctor Ryuu said angrily.

"So I did. Kill him, boys, he doesn't have bullet proof skin." Lila said quickly followed by a smirk.

"N-No… Wait, Lila… I'll go to your side! I'll help you get rid of Lady Ami! I'll help you! You know I have the best skills-,"

Two very loud gunshots were heard even before Doctor Ryuu could complete his sentence. The lifeless body fell limp onto the ground with blood sprouting out from the two wounds on his forehead. The doctor's spectacles broke on impact and cut his nose bridge. Blood was flowing freely from the wounds and it was a big mess.

"Do not start to worry; these laboratories are very sound proof. Not even an explosion can get through these sound proof walls. Now we have to take the stairs up and feed this body to Larissa," Lila explained calmly and pointed to the stairs.

"What about the blood?" Gojyo asked and pointed at the blood stains.

"You don't have to worry about that, either. It happens all the time," Lila said and started to walk off.

Sanzo held Doctor Ryuu's legs and dragged the body up the staircase. It was his first time even touching a dead body, but for the sake of their safety, and Goku's safety, he had to do it. Gojyo and Lila followed promptly and helped with the body. They quickly reached Larissa's room, and it seemed as if the two guards earlier on had left.

"You two wait here, Larissa will definitely turn carnivorous at the smell of blood." Lila instructed and opened Larissa's door.

A loud howl, sounding something like a wolf's, was heard as Larissa whiffed blood. Lila entered the room and shut the door behind her. Sanzo and Gojyo peered through the window and saw Larissa's flesh start to turn into the rotting face that the two saw when she turned cannibal.

Larissa dove into the dead body and ripped part after part of the body up. She devoured it hungrily and seemed to be thanking Lila with her grateful stare. Blood spurted onto her face as Larissa tore the arteries and veins apart, leaving a horrible and disgusting sight that Gojyo and Sanzo could no longer accept. It wasn't long before Lila exited the room, her face nonchalant as ever.

"W-What happened in there?" Gojyo asked.

"It's not as if you don't know… She's hungry, and then she eats, simple as that." Lila explained casually.

"That's just sick… I don't know how you put up with it," Sanzo remarked as he walked away from Larissa's room.

"I got used to it; it's not really a big deal." Lila said as-a-matter-of-factly as she stared at her blood stained clothes.

"How could you ever get used to something like… _that_?" Gojyo remarked as he peered in Larissa's window once again.

Larissa looked up from devouring the carcass, and her eyes found Gojyo's. It gave off an evil glint, seeming to remember his taste from that one bite that she took. Gojyo shuddered and backed off from the window quickly.

"You seem to enjoy scaring yourself," Lila commented as Gojyo walked towards her and Sanzo.

"I-I… She's just…" Gojyo tried to explain.

"Don't worry; most people would probably have the same reaction. But Sanzo…" Lila started as she observed Sanzo's fine features. From the perfectly hooked nose to the permanently creased forehead, she analyzed every part of his face with deep contemplation. "…I won't be surprised if you were one of us,"

Sanzo was taken aback by the comment and stared at Lila strangely. He had the strongest urge to say that he'll never be one of them, but for some odd reason, held back.

"I think we should go look for Goku now," Sanzo said and looked away from everyone. He was starting to get self conscious and that wasn't something that he liked very much.

Lila once again led the way as they went back to the stairway. They ran down the steps quickly, with their heavy guns slamming against their bodies.

"You know that this is the last level, right?" Lila asked before she allowed them to exit the door from the stairway.

"Well yeah… This is how far the elevator can bring us, so I suppose…" Gojyo answered and scratched his head.

"You're wrong. From this corridor onwards, behind this door, there will be a room where an extra stairs is provided; for Lady Ami's room only. Once you go through this door, you're not allowed to turn back, and you're going to have to fight your way through. Do you get me?" Lila explained thoroughly.

"Wait, if guns can't kill the bulletproof guards, then what can?" Sanzo asked after much contemplation.

"Knives, or if you're lucky enough, a bullet through their temple. That's the only place that isn't bulletproof, and it includes you in this category as well, so you better be careful. They won't attack me as they have electronic visors that differs NESS members and intruders, so you have to take care of yourselves, then. And I warn you, these guards are _fast_." Lila explained once again.

Both boys nodded their head and Lila swung the door open. They were immediately introduced to a whole new environment filled with enemies. The guards guarding that level were obviously not amused by intruders and immediately surrounded them promptly as their visor equipment analyzed the two strangers. Sanzo and Gojyo did not even need a killing command from Lila before starting up their guns and firing it at every guard they see. Some guards, wearing green uniforms, didn't have bulletproof skin; and were eliminated easily. However, guards that were wearing black uniform were almost up to Sanzo and Gojyo's skill level.

"Sanzo, look out!" Gojyo cried out as a black guard jumped up into the air behind Sanzo, weaving a huge axe, attempting to slice Sanzo into two.

Sanzo quickly avoided the attack and shot a green guard that was sneaking up behind Gojyo. The pair was now back to back, panting heavily as the enemies kept coming.

"_You_ look out!" Sanzo said and rushed forward to a black guard and kicked him down onto the ground.

Gojyo defended himself from a trio of black guards as he slipped out a jack knife and speedily slipped behind one of the three and cut his throat. The other two guards quickly caught on and soon enough, one of the guards pinned Gojyo down with his heavy weight. However, thanks to the liquid that Lila gave, Gojyo easily lifted up the guard, threw him onto the other black guard and rushed forward to shoot two bullets in each of their temples.

Sanzo and Gojyo quickly disposed of their enemies, and soon enough after almost twenty minutes of fighting, Sanzo and Gojyo slumped against the wall, panting heavily. They looked at each other and gave a thumb up sign before wiping sweat off their foreheads.

Lila emerged from a corner creepily, giving the boys a clap of praise.

"Congratulations boys, you wiped out most of the guards of this level." Lila said as her pink lips curved into a slight smile.

"Y-Yeah, and it was pretty easy, too!" Gojyo commented and grinned as he lifted up a gun and punched into the air as a sign of victory.

"Baka, you underestimate NESS! It was only easy because they were not prepared for intruders with your skills. They didn't know about the potion I gave you, or the fights would have been much tougher." Lila scolded and rolled her eyes.

The hallway was now empty, with blood staining the floors and the smell of death lingering in the air. It seemed as if Sanzo and Gojyo were now ruthless murderers infiltrating a science laboratory.

"Now, let us proceed towards Lady Ami's room, shall we?" Lila asked and led the way for both boys.

"Are there going to be more fights? I think I'm bleeding somewhere," Gojyo asked innocently.

Lila and Sanzo both turned around to look at Gojyo's pale face. He gave a slight smile, and then passed out onto the ground, his palm pierced with a small dart.

"We must get him into a lab quickly!" Lila exclaimed anxiously.

Sanzo was in shock as he stared at his partner's now-limp body. Gojyo had been poisoned by a dart one of the black guards had.

"_I dragged him into this mess…"_ Sanzo started to blame himself.

"Baka, carry him, now! We have no time to waste!" Lila scolded angrily as she plucked out the dart from Gojyo's palm. Beads of sweat were dripping down her forehead.

"Y-Yes," Sanzo replied and proceeded to do as Lila said.

With that, the two of them entered one of the now-empty laboratories and had a new battle to fight. This time, to save Gojyo's life.

-----

I apologize for this taking so long! I've been extremely busy, once again. But no worries! Busy period is now _over_, so I will quickly finish up this story! Reviews are very appreciated! If you have the time to read, I'm sure you have a minute to review.


	13. The Final

Oh my god… Sorry this took so long, everyone! I'm really sorry! Now…Without further ado, I present to you…Chapter 13.!

Disclaimer: I don't own Saiyuki and all that random jazz.

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Sanzo ran after Lila who fished out a key from her pocket and opened a white door to a lab. The bright lights hurt Sanzo's eyes, after being in the dark corridors for so long. Lila gestured to the table where Sanzo laid Gojyo and stood next to him, shivering a little from the nervousness.

"H-He's one of my best friends…" Sanzo stuttered under the pressure as Lila took a dagger out from one of the compartments.

"And he's going to die, if you don't co-operate!" Lila scolded and glared at Sanzo angrily.

She put on some rubber gloves and a face mask. Lila seemed to be extremely agitated and frustrated. Sanzo didn't know what poison Gojyo had running through his veins at the moment, or how to treat it. But right now, he was dealing with _two_ lives that he had to save. He didn't know if he could save his own, or whether his heart was going to kill itself by the way it was beating at the moment.

"I-I… What do you want me to do!" Sanzo asked as confusion filled his eyes.

"Put your fist in Gojyo's mouth. This is going to hurt." Lila commanded angrily.

Stumped by the strange request but fighting against time, Sanzo had no other choice but to comply. His hand shivering, Sanzo parted Gojyo's lips and forced his fist in slightly, shutting his eyes together not to get disgusted.

"Okay, prepare yourself…" Lila instructed and counted down to three.

As three struck, Lila stabbed Gojyo's palm with the dagger. It protruded through his whole hand and crucified the hand on the wooden table, causing the wound to bleed even more than ever. Gojyo's teeth suddenly tightened its grasp around Sanzo's hand and sunk into his skin. Blood trickled down from his fist and down Gojyo's throat. Sanzo winced and attempted to pull his fist out from Gojyo's mouth, but Lila walked over hurriedly to slap him and then slit a cut in his palm, causing him to bleed much more.

"Wh-What in the world is going on, Lila!" Sanzo demanded to know as he winced from the pain.

"Have you ever heard of a blood transfusion? Yes, this is exactly what's going on right now. I'm draining the poison from Gojyo's wound and you're giving him new blood." Lila explained and took off her gloves and face mask.

"Can't we do it some other way! His teeth are… sharp…" Sanzo said angrily.

"Nope, this is NESS if you still remember. Everything has a reason for its process." Lila commented with a slight smile and nodded.

The transfusion went on for about an hour and Sanzo was starting to feel drowsy. Lila, on the other hand, continually analyzed Gojyo's blood in a flask with some devices Sanzo had never seen before. Soon, he felt Gojyo's teeth release his hand a little, and bit by bit, released it fully. Not having the strength to do anything else, Sanzo fell onto the ground, breathing heavily.

"Eat this; it'll make you feel better." Lila said as she handed Sanzo a dark brown round pill.

Without hesitation, Sanzo popped the pill into his mouth and within seconds, his body started to heat up like a fire burning the every inch of his skin, and gradually felt better. Sanzo then stood up and reached for some bandages to wrap his wounds.

"How's Gojyo doing...?" Sanzo asked as he wrapped his wounds.

"He should be up in a few minutes… And don't bother wrapping your wounds. The pill should be working on your wounds now." Lila mused as she looked at Gojyo.

And truthfully enough, Sanzo felt the skin around his wounds tightening and closing. As he sat on the edge of the table and lit a cigarette, Lila continued to observe Gojyo until he showed signs of awakening. His fingers moved a little before his mouth opened again and coughed a little. Soon, his eyes began to twitch and breathe heavily. It wasn't long until his eyes opened fully and sat up quickly.

"W-What in the world happened! Where's Sanzo… Goku?" Gojyo exclaimed suddenly as he looked around furiously.

Lila said nothing and simply pointed to where Sanzo was sitting. Gojyo's face showed signs of relief and walked towards Sanzo.

"Mind giving me a drag?" He asked with a smile.

A slap was heard as Sanzo's hand stung Gojyo's cheek, and immediately placed the cigarette in Gojyo's lips after that.

"What was _that_ for!" Gojyo asked angrily and took a drag off the cigarette.

"Payment for using my blood, you asshole." Sanzo said bluntly as his eyes narrowed.

Before Gojyo could protest, Lila stepped in between them and gave a smirk of satisfaction.

"Now that we're all happy, we should continue. There isn't much time left before Lady Ami throws up her defenses." Lila said with a nod.

"Let's go then," Sanzo replied and hopped off the table.

Lila immediately moved to the corner of the room and stepped on a small pedal on the floor, and soon enough a door opened and she motioned to the two boys to follow her.

"Shortcut to Lady Ami's room… I just thought of it." She said with a smile.

It seemed to be a long winding road of brown stairs leading to a dungeon of some sort as the walls were rocky and brown as well. The trio made their way down the stairs quickly, careful not to step on dead rats or random body parts that were seen along the way. There was some sort of murky dead smell as the trio made haste.

"What is this place..?" Sanzo asked as he furrowed his eyebrows and wrinkled his nose due to the smell.

"I doubt you'd want to know… Now hurry, we're almost there." Lila said and turned down the corner and started running down the next flight of stairs.

As they reached they went further and further down the steps, they started to notice a door with light shining through. It seemed inviting, like a gate to heaven, as they approached closer and closer. Soon, they were close enough to analyze what was beyond the door, and walked through without hesitation. As the three of them entered the room, the door shut behind them and locked automatically. The room was dark, and they couldn't see anything. Soon, lights were switched on and the room was lit up immediately.

"WELCOME!" A loud voice boomed from nowhere.

The trio's attention immediately shifted to their right, and saw her beautiful face. Her body seated on a throne made of velvet, hair raven black with the straightest of bangs. Lady Ami's shocking blue eyes matched the trio's.

"Welcome… To my humble abode," Lady Ami murmured as she stood up from her throne.

She was dressed up oddly. Wearing a black leather corset with tight vinyl shorts, she looked like an executor. Her lips painted ruby red and in her hand, a long whip. Sanzo's eyes darted to Lady Ami's right. There he was the person he had been searching for.

"…GOKU!" Sanzo shouted out loudly and attempted to go forward, but was stopped by Lila's hand.

"Ah, so you've came looking for him… My little subordinate…" Lady Ami said with a smirk and walked slowly towards Goku.

Goku's hands were strapped to the ceiling, his body shirtless and filled with whip marks. His face tear-stained, bruised and battered, he seemed to have difficulty breathing. Goku's head hung low, having no more energy to see, hear, smell or taste… His energy was completely drained from his body.

"…What have you done to him…" Sanzo said with a glare, his hands clenching as fury ran through his veins.

Lady Ami gave a slight laugh and patted Goku's cheek lightly then put an arm around his bloodied shoulder.

"Is it not obvious enough? Or maybe, I should show you more…" Lady Ami said with a sadistic grin and cracked her whip.

"W-What are you talking about? NO!" Sanzo yelled as Lady Ami slapped the whip across Goku's face, a cut immediately forming as the blood dripped down his body slowly.

Goku didn't even flinch or make a sound… His body too drained to do anything else. Sanzo heart skipped a beat as he saw the toll that the wounds were taking on Goku's body. Lady Ami simply laughed as she saw the look on Sanzo's face and smirked. Then, her whip pointed in Lila's direction.

"…AND YOU! How dare you even _think_ of betraying me! I raised you up, Lila… Just as if you were my real little sister…" Lady Ami said as her eyes suddenly fired up with anger.

Lila froze a little in Lady Ami's presence and took deep breaths to calm herself down.

"I-I was simply doing what I thought would be right…" Lila murmured, taking a few steps back.

Lady Ami snorted, then walked towards a cupboard, pulling out two long swords and throwing one to Sanzo, with him efficiently catching it in confusion, and dropping his gun at the same time.

"You will battle with me… In swordplay, since us both know that guns don't work." Lady Ami said with a smirk as she gripped onto her sword, unsheathing it with ravage energy.

Confused, but not really sure what else to do, Sanzo quickly unsheathed the sword and put up his defense. Lady Ami spared not a minute for Sanzo to prepare and rushed forward for her strike. She tilted her sword to the left, attempting to cut Sanzo's neck, but Sanzo hurriedly blocked her attack, causing a clash of swords.

"Fast, I see," Lady Ami commented, and then jumped back two steps and swung the sword down on the ground.

Sanzo braced himself for the next attack, not knowing what to do next. Gojyo and Lila stood by the side, watching on, not being able to move due to the tension from the fight. Lady Ami yelled a loud battle cry and raced towards Sanzo, her sword swiftly cutting down from a high angle to Sanzo's waist, then jumping back in a defense position. Blood spurted from the deep wound immediately, causing Sanzo to yell out in pain and fall a few steps backwards.

Narrowing her eyes, Lady Ami gave no time for Sanzo to recover and immediately ran towards Sanzo, pointing her sword to his chest. Sanzo blocked the attack weakly, but fell onto the ground, though not hurt. Lady Ami immediately struck again, this time aiming to cut off his head. Sanzo blocked the attack, but it wasn't good enough. Blood spurted out once again, from his stomach.

"ARGH!" Sanzo cried out in pain as he grasped his wound.

Lady Ami stood next to him, looking down on his heavily wounded body and made a sad face.

"Awww, poor baby… Maybe you need more cuts to be _immune_ to the pain! Don't worry… I'll help you." Lady Ami said with fake remorse as she leaned down and forced a kiss on Sanzo's lips.

Sanzo used all his might to pull away from the kiss, but it wasn't good enough with Lady Ami's fingers locked onto his jaw. She released him and pulled out a knife with a jeweled hilt. One red, green and blue jewel was diagonal with each other and Lady Ami showed the knife to Sanzo. She then stood up, and walked around Sanzo in circles.

"Red, the symbol of fury and strength… Blue, the ever-changing essence of speed and air… Green, the effect of mind over body…" Lady Ami commented as she traced a finger over the blade, causing blood to trickle down. "…Do you understand what I mean? I will never let anyone… _Anyone_ to stand in my way." She said and shot a look at Lila and Gojyo who were both trembling from the energy in her presence.

Sanzo lay on the floor, breathing heavily and attempted to stand up. He used his sword as a pivot to push himself up, then without hesitation, rushed at Lady Ami with whatever strength he had left.

Lady Ami looked over to Sanzo's frail body attempting to attack her, and suddenly flew up into the air, sitting on one of the tall poles, looking down on Sanzo, whose face is full of confusion to where she went.

"Look up, darling Sanzo…" She said and gave a slight giggle.

Sanzo looked up and his eyes widened as he saw Lady Ami sitting down on a pole in the middle of nowhere, her black raven hair flying around her face gracefully, more than five meters up in the air.

"W-What in the…" Gojyo stuttered and held on to Lila as he looked as Lady Ami as well.

"Bet Lila never gave you the _other_ potion, did she? I **know **all the strengths and defects that your body has, Sanzo. After all, _I_ created NESS. _I _created the green potion that you drank. Don't be so foolish, Sanzo…" Lady Ami started and narrowed her eyes. "…And as for you, young lady… You will be dealt with once this is over." She finished as she looked over to Lila.

As that was said, Lady Ami took the jeweled blade, aimed, and threw the blade threw the air, directly striking Sanzo's left chest, right above his heart. Gojyo and Lila's eyes both widened as they saw Sanzo's face go blank with pain and fell onto the floor.

"_I-I'm dying…" _Sanzo thought to himself as he fell slowly to the ground, his surroundings turning white.

"S-SANZO!" Gojyo cried out and attempted to run forward to help Sanzo, but his legs wouldn't obey.

Lady Ami flew down from the pole and stood next to Sanzo again, who was breathing heavily for air, for life. She took the sword away from his hand and placed the blade in front of his throat, then looked up to Lila and Gojyo with the most sadistic look on her face, her tongue licking her red ruby lips.

"Say goodbye…" Lady Ami said with a huge smirk of victory on her face, the blade pressing harder to Sanzo's neck.

"…GOODBYE!" A loud voice bellowed from behind Lady Ami.

Lady Ami, Gojyo and Lila all turned around in shock as they noticed two tall figures emerging from the darkness of the shadows.

"…K-K-K…K-Kogaiji?" Lady Ami stuttered as her nerves started to break from the sight of her old lover.

"HAKKAI!" Gojyo called out loudly and suddenly found the strength to run towards his friend.

Hakkai and Kogaiji both gave a smile as they walked nearer towards Lady Ami, both obviously suffering from some injuries, but it didn't seem to bother them. Hakkai pulled out the crumpled note that he found in the car and grinned at Gojyo.

"Sorry for being late!" He said a little too cheerfully.

Lady Ami bit her lip and took the sword away from Sanzo, immediately pointing it at Kogaiji and narrowing her eyes. She couldn't believe who she was seeing in front of her. Kogaiji was long gone, dead, to her. He swore never ever to see her again, and she said the same thing, long, long ago.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE!" Lady Ami screamed loudly, her emotions going haywire.

"To save you from this madness…" Kogaiji murmured as he pulled out a sword of his own.

"BULLSHIT! YOU CAME TO SAVE GOKU! YOU NEVER…" Lady Ami started, her lip beginning to quiver. "…Never cared about me…" She finished with a small voice.

Kogaiji nudged Hakkai to get Sanzo, and he immediately ran towards the limp body to take care of it. Gojyo and Lila then rushed towards Goku to untie him from the ceiling and to pop him one of the healing pills that Lila had prepared. Kogaiji and Lady Ami were still staring eye to eye, waiting for one or the other to make a move.

"...I always did, Ami… I always cared about you." Kogaiji said and took a step closer.

Lady Ami took a step back and raised her defenses. There was only one person in the world that could intimidate her, and he was standing right in front of her. Kogaiji dropped his sword and raised his hands in a surrendering sign and walked closer to Lady Ami. As Kogaiji inched closer and closer to her, she never once did move her sword. As he walked behind her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders, Lady Ami dropped the sword and fell onto the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks like drops of crystals as she sobbed into her palms loudly.

"W-Why, Kogaiji…. Why! Y-You left me… You shouldn't be here… Kogaiji…" Lady Ami cried out loudly, Kogaiji's grip getting firmer.

"I'm sorry… I'm so sorry, Ami…" Kogaiji whispered into her ear as he sat down and hugged Lady Ami's small body in his arms.

Lady Ami's tears wouldn't stop falling as her lip trembled from all the emotional pain. She didn't know why he was here, or why he didn't come to her earlier. It was the greatest fear of her life, to see Kogaiji once again.

"Why, Kogaiji… P-Please… Give me an answer…" Lady Ami uttered from her mouth as her body trembled.

"As I said… I came to save you from this madness… A long, long time ago, I walked away from you, just as you were getting into NESS. I could have stayed and changed you, but I didn't… I walked away, and broke your heart." Kogaiji said and kissed Lady Ami's forehead.

Lady Ami buried her face in Kogaiji's torso, staining his shirt with tears as Kogaiji held her tightly with all the love in the world.

"H-How are you going to save me… I-I can't be saved…" Lady Ami asked with deep breaths.

"Like that," Kogaiji said, then kissed her deeply and suddenly struck a knife into Lady Ami's heart, emitting a deep gasp from in between the kiss.

Black blood flowed from her wound, staining the both of them. Kogaiji pulled away from the kiss and looked at Lady Ami's soft tear stained face gasping for air as more tears rolled down her cheeks from the pain of the stab in her heart.

"Take them both and run out, now! There's an emergency exit behind the throne!" Kogaiji yelled to Lila, Hakkai and Gojyo and took out a grenade bomb from his pocket.

"B-But… Kogaiji!" Hakkai cried out as he held onto Sanzo's body.

Kogaiji looked down at Lady Ami's barely breathing body and held her tighter to him, his face streaming down with tears this time.

"JUST GO! I need to finish this…" Kogaiji said with a small whimper as he looked into Lady Ami's striking blue eyes one last time as the threatened to close forever.

Hakkai, Gojyo and Lila carried both Sanzo and Goku then ran out the back door without taking a last look at Kogaiji and Lila. They left everything behind, all the bad memories, all the sacrificing, all the pain. All it matters was that they made it out safely. Kogaiji nuzzled Lady Ami's soft skin and kissed her on her blood tasting lips one last time before dropping the grenade on the floor.

"I've always loved you, Ami… Even now." Kogaiji whispered into her ear.

"…I-I love… you too." Lady Ami said with what's left of her strength.

"I love you," Kogaiji said one more time.

"…Goodbye," Lady Ami said and shut her eyes tightly.

The grenade went off with a huge boom just as the five people reached outside safely. And like that, NESS was over.

-----

Lying on a hill, overlooking the remains of the NESS building, Goku's wounds have closed up and he was up with energy again. Sanzo laid on the ground, unconscious as Lila slipped him the pill to heal his wounds. Goku awoke from his sleep and stood up to analyze his surroundings.

"L-LILA! Gojyo… Hakkai…. SANZO!" Goku shouted in disbelief as he looked around quickly.

"Yes, Goku, we're all here… And not only us, look behind you." Hakkai replied with a huge smile on his bruised face.

Goku and Lila both turned around, and to their surprise, dozens of their NESS friends have escaped from the building, thanks to Kogaiji and Hakkai. Running towards their friends, laughing, crying and hugging, it was certainly the best day of Lila and Goku's lives.

Hakkai and Gojyo both put an arm around each other as they smiled, thanking God that they both made it through this ordeal. It wasn't long before Goku emerged from the crowd and ran towards Sanzo's side. His body was still weak, but it was slowly healing. His wounds slowly closed up as Goku held his body near his and sobbed a little out of guilt.

"I'm sorry… Sorry for causing you all this pain, Sanzo…" Goku said as he hugged Sanzo's neck tightly.

"YOU SHOULD BE!" Sanzo said loudly as his eyes suddenly fluttered open.

"S-SANZO! You're awake!" Goku said with a loud gasp and let go of Sanzo immediately.

Sanzo's head knocked onto the grassy ground as Goku released him. Hakkai and Gojyo both shook their heads and stifled a laugh as they watched the parody in front of them. Not knowing whether to laugh or cry, Sanzo slowly stood up.

"Are you alright?" Goku asked inquisitively as he stared at where Sanzo's wounds once used to be.

Nodding and stretching out his hand towards Goku, Sanzo smiled with all the true happiness in his heart. He finally made it, he finally saved Goku.

"Let's go home," Sanzo whispered as Goku took his hand. "…All of us." Sanzo then said with a huge smile on his face, looking at Hakkai, Gojyo, Lila and the rest of the NESS slaves.

With that, they escaped from their past lives, throwing everything behind, and walked towards the rising sun of a new day.

-----

END OF CHAPTER!

This is the end of the story… But not exactly. NEXT chapter will be the last, noting a filler chapter. Meaning that it'll be a thorough explanation of what exactly happened between Lady Ami and Kogaiji, and what happens to Sanzo and Goku in future. STAY TUNED!


	14. The End

Disclaimer: Yes, I own Saiyuki. Now sue me.

-----

It seemed like forever since he last slept in his bed. The chirping sounds that the annoying birds were making sickened Sanzo as he twisted in his sleep. Unable to take it any further, his eyes fluttered open.

"Good morning, Sanzo," Goku greeted him in his face.

A second of surprise came over him before he remembered everything that had happened. They broke into the NESS headquarters to save Goku, and made it out alive. Everyone was exhausted and drained from the constant fighting that they slept the day away and woke up to a brand new morning. Only that Sanzo woke up with Goku in his face.

"Your breath stinks," Sanzo retorted coldly as he got out of bed and headed to the toilet with Goku trotting behind him.

The two made their way into the bathroom as they washed they faces and brushed their teeth simultaneously before hearing a large crowd in the kitchen downstairs.

"W-What the fuck?" Sanzo burst out loud as he walked into the kitchen and saw an enormous group of people hovering over the food that Hakkai and Gojyo cooked.

"Heh, they can't help it... It's Hakkai's cooking, after all." Gojyo said as he scratched his head.

Sanzo stayed quiet for a few minutes and tried to recall every single detail correctly. The last he knew, he, Gojyo and Hakkai brought Goku, Lila and the rest of the slaves back home with them… But were there really so many people? Sanzo's eyes searched around for Lila's petite figure through the crowd before spotting her sitting in front of the television in the living room. Walking towards her cautiously, Sanzo chose the words to say carefully.

"E-Er… You like to watch television?" He asked lamely as he approached her.

Lila sat on the couch with her feet on the coffee table, nibbling on a carrot stick before nodding, her attention completely diverted from Sanzo's presence. Sanzo had anticipated the tension and awkwardness, but he didn't think about whether he was able to handle it or not.

"Lila, can you tell me what the fuck is going around here! Why are all these people still here! Don't you people know how to LEAVE!" Sanzo bellowed out of frustration.

Lila rolled her eyes and finally turned towards Sanzo as she stood up.

"If you haven't noticed, we don't have a place to go… Unless you want us to turn in ourselves to the police and be sent to the government for scientific research, I think we'll be staying here for awhile; besides… I think this is really Hakkai's place, and not yours." Lila argued back with a smirk of triumph.

"Why you…" Sanzo said as he gritted his teeth.

"Anyway, I believe I have not fulfilled my duty as to thank you for saving Goku. Maybe you'll like to join me? Take a seat." Lila commented and sat back down in her couch.

Sanzo started to protest, but could not find the strength to. Reluctantly, he complied and sat down on the seat next to Lila.

"Tell me the story, Lila… Tell me what happened from the beginning. What was the relationship between Hakkai's doctor and Lady Ami?" Sanzo asked with his eyebrows furrowed.

"Relax, Sanzo… I'm about to. It goes way back… Lady Ami always told me about this story whenever she was in a good mood. Kogaiji and her first met about probably a hundred over years ago… Lady Ami was a simple waitress who earned a measly sum per month, but Kogaiji worked for one of the so-called science research development offices at that time. They both fell in love quickly and got married after a year. Lady Ami, of course, quit her job and followed Kogaiji around like a little puppy. Kogaiji taught Lady Ami everything he was researching about Human Science and Lady Ami, being a woman with quick wit and intelligence, learned everything hastily. It wasn't long before Kogaiji and Lady Ami started doing experiments together and researching more and more on human development. It wasn't until ten years later till they found a way to keep their youth and never age and of course, they came up with the green liquid. Somehow, Lady Ami managed to outshine Kogaiji in their research and she wanted to set up her own company, NESS, to create clones and slaves like us, to take over the underground world. Kogaiji knew it was a horrible move and refused to cooperate with Lady Ami. They disputed and fell apart, ending up in Kogaiji leaving the state and leaving Lady Ami alone to set up her company. What Lady Ami told me was that she suffered greatly from the loss of Kogaiji's presence… But I think that it was because of Kogaiji leaving that turned her even more ambitious, power hungry and evil…" Lila finally finished with a huge sigh.

Sanzo's brain hurt as he tried to absorb all the information in silence. His eyes looked down at his hands as he twirled his thumbs. All these loving, hating, fighting, he was tired of. The only thing he wanted to do now was live his life in peace and quiet, no longer having all these complications.

"I will help you and the rest of your friends to find jobs… And meanwhile, you can stay here in Hakkai's house while I'll move back to my own place." Sanzo said after much thought.

"W-What about Goku, then?" Lila asked seriously.

Sanzo's eyes averted over to Goku's smiling face as he munched on a French toast. How could he ever leave this silly boy alone?

"…He'll come with me." Sanzo replied hastily and ran up the stairs to start packing.

Shortly after he took out his luggage bag and started to stuff his clothing in, Goku, Hakkai and Gojyo appeared by the door and stood there frozen.

"Why are you moving back, Sanzo?"

"Dude, we just escaped from the most dangerous adventure in our lives!"

"Are you taking me with you, Sanzo?"

Three questions came to Sanzo at the same time, and he didn't know how to answer. All he could do was to continue packing his clothes and ignoring them. Goku tugged on Sanzo's shirt sleeve as tears threatened to spill out of his eyes.

"W-Why, Sanzo?" Goku asked meekly.

"Shut up, baka, I'm taking you with me. Go pack your things NOW!" Sanzo retorted angrily as he zipped his bag up with Goku running back to his own room to pack his luggage.

"What about us, Sanzo? We've been your friends for so long… Are you going to abandon us again?" Hakkai stated with the most serious tone.

Sanzo turned around to face the angry expressions of his friends.

"I'm sorry… I'm just moving back to my own home with Goku… Lila will explain everything," Sanzo said calmly and proceeded to walk out of the door.

Before he could leave the room, Hakkai stopped Sanzo with his palm on Sanzo's chest and whispered into Sanzo's ear.

"I understand, Sanzo… _We_ understand."

With that, Sanzo walked past both of his friends and hastily headed for his car which has mysteriously been retrieved from Elizabeth Street. As soon as Goku hopped in the car, face full of confusion, Sanzo drove off speedily.

The pair reached Sanzo's house within a matter of minutes; due to the fact that Sanzo drove like a mad man on the road. The blond haired man dropped his belongings on the ground and immediately collapsed onto the sofa, leaving Goku to shut the door and walk towards Sanzo in confusion.

"W-What's going on…?" Goku asked as his eyebrow twitched.

"You and I, we're going to be staying together." Sanzo replied coldly with his eyes closed.

Goku's eyes lit up with happiness as his brain accepts the words that Sanzo had just said. After all this while, he could finally be with Sanzo. Picking up his courage, Goku sat next to Sanzo and put a hand on his chest, feeling his heart beat.

"Thank you for saving me, Sanzo…" Goku whispered softly.

A slight nod was Sanzo's answer, and it seemed like the cue for Goku to pull his hand away, so he did. Little did he know it would cause Sanzo to say the most impossible words in his life.

"I love you, Goku." Sanzo muttered out quickly.

Shock overwhelmed Goku as he was paralyzed for those few seconds. His mind went blank and his lips curled into the largest smile he could possibly master.

"I know,"

"Fuck you," Sanzo responded, still closing his eyes.

Goku couldn't help but laugh and eased back on the sofa. It was time, time for him to rest, but this time, he will no longer be alone…

-----

This is really the end. –sob- I really want to thank you guys one more time for sticking it out with me so long throughout this whole story. It's been my biggest and longest yet, and of course, my favourite. I hope you all enjoyed this series of Under The Mask. If you would like to contact me, this is my again, thank you, all of you.


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